UNITED KINGDOM
Coventry Telegraph
Sep 29, 2014 By Jenny Waddington
A Catholic bishop from Coventry has resigned from his post after claiming to have brought ‘shame’ on his diocese and the church.
The Rt Rev Kieran Conry, who is Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Arundel and Brighton, covering Surrey and Sussex, issued a statement on Saturday which said he had “been unfaithful to his promises as a Catholic priest”.
The statement, which was read in all churches of the diocese over the weekend, said: “I am sorry to confess that, going back some years, I have been unfaithful to my promises as a Catholic priest.
“I would like to reassure you that my actions were not illegal and did not involve minors.
“As a result, however, I have decided to offer my resignation as bishop with immediate effect and will now take some time to consider my future. I want to apologise first of all to the individuals hurt by my actions and then to all of those inside and outside the diocese who will be shocked, hurt and saddened to hear this.
“I am sorry for the shame that I have brought on the diocese and the Church and I ask for your prayers and forgiveness.”
Originally from Coventry, Mr Conry was brought up in a council house on Cannon Hill Road, near Canley cemetery.
The son of a working-class Irish family, he attended All Souls’ Junior School, near Hearsall Common, and was ordained in July 1975 at All Souls’ Church by Archbishop George Patrick Dwyer of Birmingham.
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