Irish Church Leader Says Bishop Hurt, Betrayed Catholics
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DUBLIN, Ireland — The leader of Ireland’s Roman Catholic church said Tuesday that a bishop who broke his vow of celibacy and fathered a child had hurt and betrayed Catholics.
Cardinal Cahal Daly also welcomed disgraced Bishop Eamonn Casey’s admission that he had sinned.
Casey admitted Monday that he had fathered a son, now 17 and living in Ridgefield, Conn. He also said he used church funds to pay maintenance to the mother, although the cash had been repaid.
American divorcee Annie Murphy, 44, stunned Ireland last Friday when she said that her son Peter was born after a “magical” 1970s love affair with Casey.
The Roman Catholic Church requires that its priests be celibate.
Casey, 65, resigned last week as Bishop of Galway, citing personal reasons, and left for the United States.
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