The acting director of the Maryvale Institute in Birmingham has
resigned for personal reasons and said that a number of other staff are
about to step down.
In a short letter to students, Dr Petroc Willey, who was
presented to Pope Francis last month during the International Congress
on Catechesis, said that a number of other staff had also decided to
leave the Institute.
He said: "I am writing to let you know that for personal reasons I
will soon be leaving Maryvale. A number of other staff here have also
made a similar decision. Some of you I have known for longer than others
but this letter is an opportunity to let you all know of the happiness
and profound satisfaction that has come from my time here over more than
20 years."
Fr Edward Clare has been named as his successor.
The Maryvale Institute, of which Archbishop of Birmingham Bernard
Longley is president, was awarded a series of honours under Pope
Benedict XVI for its work in catechesis.
Maryvale was made the first Higher Institute of Religious Sciences in the English-speaking world in 2011.
Under the last pontificate Dr Willey was appointed as a consultor to
the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelisation. He and Dr
Caroline Farey, Director of the Institute's Bachelor of Divinity courses
and Head of Catechetical Formation, were also appointed as experts to
the Vatican's Synod on the New Evangelisation.