The Bishop of St Davids has released a pastoral letter to his diocese announcing his resignation. Bishop Carl Cooper’s May 1 letter follows upon the April 29 announcement that Archbishop Barry Morgan and the Welsh bishops had accepted his resignation “as being in the best interests of the diocese and the Church in Wales at this time.”Bishop Cooper told the members of his West Wales diocese the “current situation has made it impossible for me to continue as your Bishop. I would humbly ask your support and prayers for my family and everyone involved in this painful and vulnerable situation.”
He offered his apologies for “any of my actions” that might have caused offence, adding that his tenure as Bishop of St Davids over the past six years had been an “honour” and “privilege.”
The Dean of Narberth, Canon Michael Butler told the Western Mail the bishop’s dignified farewell was in keeping with the “compassionate, loving spirit” he had shown to “all the clergy and people of the diocese.
Canon Butler said the whisper campaign mounted against the bishop was ill befitting the priestly office. “We have a code of conduct enjoining us not to speak ill of anyone, let alone to speak ill of a bishop, his family and others,” he said.
Bishop Cooper had been on a six-week leave of absence pending an investigation into the circumstances of the breakdown of his marriage. On March 7 a petition signed by 23 members of the St Davids clergy had asked Dr Morgan to “establish the facts surrounding the Bishop’s current situation and to take whatever action, if any, proves necessary.”
In February the bishop announced that he and his wife of 25 years were separating. The bishop and his wife stated “there is no one else involved on either side.”
However, rumours of an adulterous relationship between the bishop and his chaplain, the Rev Mandy Williams-Potter, had circulated in the diocese and were fuelled by Mrs Williams-Potter’s announcement that she was also leaving her husband.
On March 11, Bishop Cooper announced he was taking a leave of absence as the “recent hurtful, scurrilous and unwarranted intrusions into our family life have taken their toll. Joy, the children and I feel emotionally and spiritually battered and drained.”
The Church in Wales subsequently launched an internal inquiry and on April 29 released a statement saying the bishop had resigned and had “apologised for any of his actions that have caused offence and made it impossible for him to continue his ministry as Bishop of St Davids.”
Following the announcement of his resignation, the dean and archdeacons of St Davids stated the events of recent weeks had been “difficult” for the diocese.
However, the resignation of Bishop Cooper “now enables us to move on.”
Mrs Williams-Potter has also resigned as the Bishop’s chaplain and communications officer.
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