An outspoken Catholic priest has moved to quash rumours that his
departure from the parish he has served for 12 years is an attempt by
the Vatican to silence him.Fr Iggy O’Donovan, the popular prior of the Augustinian Church in Drogheda, announced a few weeks ago that he would be stepping down from his position and going on sabbatical.
The announcement by the priest, who has long been vocal on the need for reform of the Church and has publicly supported priests censured for criticisms of Rome, led to an assumption that he too was being sanctioned.
However, he insisted yesterday that this was not the case. “My time as prior was up here and the provincial offered me some sabbatical time which I accepted,” he said.
“I’m going to do some extra study, spend some time with my family and recharge my batteries. They simply asked me would I like to do it and I said yes, but people have read other things into it.”
Fr O’Donovan has clashed with Rome in the past and was admonished in 2006 for concelebrating Mass with a Church of Ireland counterpart. He has also been critical of the Vatican’s silencing of priests such as Frs Tony Flannery and Gerry Moloney over the past year.
But unlike those clerics, he said he was not currently under censure and knew of no pending disciplinary action against him either from his own order or from Rome.
“To be fair to those who have expressed concern on my behalf, the idea that people have suspended me or punished me has come from a confluence of events. I’m not afraid to speak out, but I can’t blame Rome for something they didn’t do. People have jumped the gun. It’s just a misunderstanding.”
He said he would leave Drogheda shortly, but might return there when his time off finished.
“I’ll talk with the Augustinians in a few months and see what my next step is. I could well be back in Drogheda but we’ll have to see.”