Statement by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales:
“With regard to children of the ordained and religious, every bishop in England and Wales would want to discern the best ways in which it is possible for the father of a child, who is a priest, to fulfil his responsibilities.
“Every bishop in England and Wales is willing to meet anyone in their diocese in a similar situation.
“With regard to a priest who has become a father, the Bishops of England and Wales recognise that it is not possible to rule out, at the beginning, any possible responses to these situations, which involve a simple default position of insisting that a man ‘leave the priesthood’ or that he automatically be permitted to continue in active ministry.”
