A COUNTY WEXFORD priest said his final Mass at the weekend, two weeks after he told parishioners that he was to leave the priesthood.Fr. Noel O'Brien, the Catholic Curate based in Templeudigan, told his congregation two weeks ago that he was to leave the priesthood out of a desire for companionship.
It is understood that he has applied for a special dispensation to get married and it has been reported that he is to fly to Florida to wed.
Local parishioners filed into St. Mary and St. Lawrence's Church on Sunday morning at 11.30 a.m. for Fr. O'Brien's final Mass in Templeudigan.
Towards the end of the ceremony, Joe O'Connor, the Chairperson of the Parish Council, made a special presentation to Fr. O'Brien on behalf of the Parish.
The presentation was met with rapturous applause from the near-full church and a clearly humbled Fr. O'Brien thanked the congregation for their support and unrelenting kindness.
'I am very grateful to the many people who have visited me and wished me well. Your good wishes and gifts mean the world to me and are a great source of affirmation and a great memory to carry into the future,' he said.
He announced from the pulpit two weeks that he was to leave the priesthood as he wanted companionship in life, having found the priesthood lonely.
However, he would not be drawn on the subject and when contacted, he said that it was a ' very personal' issue and would not wish to comment further.
The former Missionary Priest arrived in the Diocese of Ferns in 2000, having worked on the missions with the Columban Order.
He was appointed by the Diocese as the Catholic Curate in Caim, where he was based until 2004, when he was reassigned to Burma.
After the one-year mission in Burma he was appointed as the CC in Templeudigan.
There is no indication yet that a permanent replacement has been found to step in to fill Fr. O'Brien's position.
'In January 2009 Fr. O'Brien said he was moving on, so any future plans he would discuss with his Order [the Columbans] not the Diocese.
He indicated that his time in Templeudigan was coming to an end,' said Fr. John Carroll, the Diocesan Communications Officer.
'If he was to be married in the Catholic Church he would have to submit himself for a process of dispensation, which is done through the Bishop or the Order. That would be sent off to Rome where the Pope would decide upon the application. We have received no application for dispensation nor have we been asked,' added Fr. Carroll.
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