A SENIOR Dundee priest has denied his relationship with a recently divorced woman is anything other than platonic. Monsignor Joseph Creegan was pictured in a newspaper yesterday leaving the new home of Anne Ogden in Balmerino in Fife after an overnight stay.
He has denied their relationship is sexual and claims he has his own room in the three- bedroom home.
The monsignor, who was the Roman Catholic representative on local education committees for several years, befriended Mrs Ogden after she and her husband, Professor Graham Ogden, went to the priest for marriage guidance.
The couple sought the priest’s help when their 23-year relationship began to break down.
Mrs Ogden works as a community nurse while her former husband is a mouth cancer specialist.
As well as speaking to Mr and Mrs Ogden as a couple, the monsignor also gave advice to both individually.
The couple have since separated and it has been claimed that the 66-year-old priest took out a joint mortgage with Mrs Ogden on the £335,000 Fife property.
Monsignor Creegan, who was priest at St Peter and Paul’s Church in Dundee until stepping down last year, also went on holiday to Italy with Mrs Ogden last summer, where they visited the Vatican.
The monsignor spoke to Bishop Vincent Logan of Dunkeld, Tayside’s top Catholic, on Saturday and gave his assurances that his relationship with Mrs Ogden was not sexual and that she was the sole owner of her new home.
Yesterday, a spokeswoman for the Diocese of Dunkeld said, “Monsignor Creegan has assured him that the house belongs entirely to Mrs Ogden.
“Bishop Logan has received no official or unofficial complaints regarding the alleged relationship.
“Bishop Logan is aware of the situation and will continue to monitor it.”
Monsignor Creegan was unavailable for comment yesterday.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
No responsibility or liability shall attach itself to either myself or to the blogspot ‘Clerical Whispers’ for any or all of the articles placed here.
The placing of an article hereupon does not necessarily imply that I agree or accept the contents of the article as being necessarily factual in theology, dogma or otherwise.
Sotto Voce