Vatican statement expected today on Dr Comiskey

A statement confirming either the resignation or the sidelining of the Bishop of Ferns, Dr Brendan Comiskey, is expected to be…

A statement confirming either the resignation or the sidelining of the Bishop of Ferns, Dr Brendan Comiskey, is expected to be released by the Vatican this morning.

Dr Comiskey, who announced that he had tendered his resignation on Easter Monday, has been in Rome this week for talks with Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Prefect of the Congregation of Bishops, with a view to formalising that resignation.

Vatican insiders yesterday speculated that, in all likelihood, this morning's announcement will confirm that Pope John Paul has accepted Dr Comiskey's resignation, proffered in the wake of the BBC TV documentary Suing The Pope.

The programme highlighted Dr Comiskey's alleged shortcomings in his handling of the case of Father Sean Fortune, the priest who committed suicide in 1999 when facing 29 charges of sexual abuse.

READ MORE

Normal Vatican practice would mean that this morning's Bollettino will not only confirm that the Pope has accepted Dr Comiskey's resignation but that he has also named his successor. With regard to the new appointment, the Pope and his advisers have a number of options.

It could be that the Pope, after consulting with Cardinal Re, with the Irish Bishops' Conference and with the Papal Nuncio in Ireland, Mgr Giuseppe Lazzarotto, will nominate a permanent successor, while at the same time indicating some future area of church work for Dr Comiskey.

The Pope may decide to appoint his "own man" by way of an Apostolic Administrator, answerable directly to Rome, without reference to the Irish Bishops.

A third possibility would be that rather than nominate a new Bishop of Ferns, a Coadjutor Bishop will be appointed alongside him.

This would effectively "suspend" Dr Comiskey.