Bryan: perhaps we are in the realm of hearsay, I wouldn’t know. Regardless, and particularly in view of the current situation in the world wide Church, Charles Drennan has certainly drawn the short straw by being cornered into resignation. Compare that outcome with other prelates who have been outed, with arguably more significant moral issues, who have found themselves, as a result, happily elevated into the Vatican service. Does this mean NZ has a remarkably high standard? No.

I am not shocked at what you state, just disappointed. As things go with the laws of nature, I would have been more surprised if it had been only once with a much older woman, so I guess normality counts against you these days. A public confession and ‘rending of garments’ in the pulpit would have done the job. I am so sorry for him, I really am, and I have to say I was no fan of his either.

So, you can be celibate but both incontinent and unchaste like Theodore McCarrick or Marciel Marcial. You can be continent, celibate but unchaste while in the rectory watching pr0n on the big-screen or downtown at the bar dressed in mufti.

As to the weak logic that unchaste clerics somehow prove we must repeal clerical celibacy, please recall that marriage requires chastity-temperance also.
What woman wants to be married to an unchaste man? A man who lusts and doesn’t seek grace. What daughter wants an unchaste father? What does an unchaste man or woman model to their children?