A PARISH priest has been stood down from his duties following an allegation involving a child.
Shocked
massgoers at a parish in Co Galway were told by the the Archbishop of
Tuam, Dr Michael Neary, that their PP would not be exercising his
ministry while a number of investigations were under way.
Archbishop Neary travelled to the parish church on Saturday to personally read a formal statement at evening mass.
The
statement, which was subsequently posted on the website of the
archdiocese of Tuam, did not name either the parish or the priest.
At Mass in the parish Sunday, a curate prayed for the parish priest and for those who had taken away his peace.
The curate said he was very sorry to have to read the archbishop's statement about his very best friend.
He
told the congregation that the statement said: "I deeply regret to
inform you that an allegation with regard to child safeguarding has been
made against Fr X, your parish priest.
The allegation dates back to the
1980s.
Allegation
"The allegation was
reported immediately by the diocese to the gardai and the HSE and the
National Board for Safeguarding Children.
"It is important to say
that what has been received is an allegation, which will require to be
investigated. In accordance with church safeguarding policy, Fr X will
not be exercising ministry while the investigation in under way.
"Fr
X is entitled to the constitutional and natural right of every person
to the presumption of innocence. My prayers are with all concerned at
this distressing time.
"The diocese continues to work with the civil authorities to promote the safety of children, which is of paramount importance."
The
statement urged anyone with concerns about safeguarding to contact the
designated persons in the diocese, the HSE or gardai.
It added that no further comment could be made at this time.
It
is understood the incident under investigation is alleged to have taken
place in a different parish in which the priest was previously working.
He has been deeply involved in the life of his local community since his arrival as parish priest some years ago.