Cardinal Keith O’Brien will face a Vatican inquiry after admitting
his sexual conduct “had fallen beneath the standards” expected of him
during his almost 50-year career. The cardinal shocked the Catholic community when he indicated that he would not contest claims against him and intended to retire permanently from the public life of the Church.
The admission came a week after three priests and a former priest accused Britain’s most senior Catholic cleric of inappropriate behaviour dating back to the 1980s.
The cardinal, who stepped down from his post as Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh in the wake of the scandal, has asked for forgiveness from those he had offended.
In a sweeping apology issued on Sunday, he said of the claims: “Initially, their anonymous and non-specific nature led me to contest them.
“However, I wish to take this opportunity to admit that there have been times that my sexual conduct has fallen below the standards expected of me as a priest, archbishop, and cardinal.”
The complaints have been reported to the Vatican, and a Scottish Catholic Media Office spokesman said: “We expect that they will be investigated and a conclusion drawn.”
The inquiry is not likely to begin until after a new pope is chosen.