SCOTLAND
Pink News
A priest, the author of a book which alleged that the Catholic Church suffered from a “culture of homosexual bullying”, has been suspended.
Bishop Joseph Toal on Saturday removed Father Matthew Despard from his post at St John Oglivie Church in Blantyre, which is part of the Archdiocese of Motherwell.
The church has brought a case against Father Despard for breaking canon law by writing the book ‘Priesthood in Crisis’.
He wrote the book ‘Priesthood in Crisis’ in 2010, but he self-published it on Amazon’s Kindle store in March in the wake of the resignation of Cardinal Keith O’Brien.
The book claimed that a powerful ‘gay mafia’ covered up a culture of sexual bullying.
Parishioners on Sunday walked out of a service, voicing opposition to the removal of the priest, which was confirmed by a spokesman for Bishop Toal.
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