Wednesday 13 April 2016

FATHER HUGH KENNEDY - A LONDON REPORT

FATHER HUGH KENNEDY - A LONDON REPORT

Hugh
Those of you who have the welfare of the Down and Connor clergy constantly in your mind and prayers will be pleased to hear that the former dean of D&C's cathedral has landed on his feet in London and in the Archdiocese of Westminster.

First of all you will be happy to know that he has placed himself near to the head of the Church in England and Wales - Cardinal Vincent Nicholls - and manages to fit in regular visits to the cathedral with his duties at More House.


Hugh in front of the cardinal and auxiliary bishop
He has also managed to make a new friend in the person of Father Christopher Thomas - the General Secretary of the Catholic Conference of Bishops of England and Wales. 


Christopher Thomas
The clerical wags of Westminister Archdiocese who have spotted them regularly together have already nicknamed them: TWEEDLEDUM and TWEEDLEDUMMER.

Hugh and Christopher have very different backgrounds. Christopher is a Welshman, a priest of the Diocese of Nottingham and a Doctor of Chemical Engineering.

Hugh of course is Irish, a priest of Down and Connor (we presume) and a Doctor of Liturgy. But then they do say that opposites attract?

So within a few months of his departure from Belfast Dean Emeritus Kennedy has placed himself close to the seats of power in the English Catholic Church.

Apart from con-celebrating with the cardinal Hugh is friends with a man who meets Cardinal Nicholls every morning at 9 am and who has access to all the bishops of England and Wales. 

Is this a sign of things to come. Will Hugh be the Canon Dean of Westminster Cathedral? Will he soon be Monsignor Kennedy? Could he even be among the English mitres as The Right Reverend Hugh Kennedy? 

Hugh has certainly given those cynics in Down and Connor who think he departed for London to be a mere chaplain a run for the money.

They must be green with envy now!

Its the old story again of Joseph being sold into slavery in Egypt by his jealous brothers but rising to the top and confounding those lesser brothers.

32 comments:

  1. Well they do say that cream rises to the top!

    PP D&C

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    1. I acknowledge it's crude, but it's in common parlance to also say that: "Shi*e floats"

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  2. Fear not. Vin ain't stupid. He is very good at applying the "pissing Indian" model. Better inside pissing out etc!
    Fr Kennedy's card is well,well marked here.

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    1. Why would Vin have taken on another "problem" in the first place - when he was under no obligation to?

      PP D&C

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    2. Because another pair of priestly hands is always useful these days, and it isn't as if he's incardinated into Westminster. Vin can get rid of Hugh if need be.

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  3. The resurrection of Hugh Kennedy's name has prompted me to remind readers that if anyone is intending joining the congregation for the forthcoming private gay mass in Clonard they can enter the spirit of things by purchasing some of the left over stock of brightly coloured shirts unsold at last years Lammas Fair.
    All sizes available. Also fluorescent coloured flip flops to match. Savings up to 50%. Come early. Big demand expected. Speedos priced to clear!
    Open tomorrow 8 til late

    C Dallat & Son
    Ballycastle.

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  4. And if you look closely at the pic of Big Shooey prancing down the Westminster aisle in front Vin, you will see wee Chrishty right in front of him. Maybe they held hands as they renewed their vows at the chrism mass?

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  5. I am not a fan of Ciaran Dallat - he behaved poorly but we are all capable of change and I am still not convinced of the vulnerability of a 40 year old business woman who expected him to leave the priesthood despite her spending £20,000 on his priestly apartments. Did she not guess that he had no intention of leaving then? So can we please give him a break?

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    1. There is much more to the Ciaran Dallat than you mention - whether you know it or not.

      If he is reinstated I already know of another so far unreported situation that will become public.

      Priest of D&C

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    2. Apparently big hughey was offered pp in coleraine and turned it down . I wudnt be suprised dallat gets offered it also

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  6. Is he not reinstated already? I thought that was the whole point of him being at the Chrism Mass and on the basis of reports - continuing to say Mass in the top end of County Antrim.

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  7. Was his presence at the Chrism Mass not evidence of his re-instatement? According to reports he has been saying Mass in the upper part of County Antrim - so re-instatement is hardly required. In any event - his escapades are nothing compared to a priest colleague marrying his male partner in a civil ceremony!

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    1. His presence at the Chrism Mass was his presence at the Chrism Mass - nothing more.

      It may have been Treanor testing the water? If so he got his public response.

      If Dallat is appointed to a post in the diocese there will be a not seen before uproar. Mark my words!

      Priest of D&C

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  8. Such hatred of Hugh Kennedy on this blog. Such a lack of Christian witness.

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    1. I do not think that there has ever been a "hatred" of Hugh Kennedy expressed on here.

      Many people have expressed doubts about him.

      There has been a distinct lack of support for Hugh.

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    2. Kennedy is a disgrace and it is shocking that he was not drummed out of the priesthood. He is damaging the integrity of the priesthood by his continued brazenness!

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    3. There is no "hatred" for Hugh Kennedy. There is annoyance that such an encumbrance - who has made zero contribution to Church life - continues to be feted and indulged.

      Hugh refused Coleraine because he has no time for Parish life. He views "ordinary people" with contempt. He is also very lazy.

      He would rather swan around Europe with Nigel and the Choirboys. He would rather chug Champers and 'shoot the breeze', in pidgin French and Italian, with young Swiss Guards. He would rather wile away the hours with 'lovely guys' than listen to poor old Maggie's woes.

      So, after a complete disaster at St Peter's Cathedral, Belfast, Big Hughie is rewarded with a More House-full of young 'lovely guys', in whose company to skip around Chelsea??

      A Westminster priest uses the analogy of the "pissing Indian" with regard to Huey and Cardinal Nichols.

      Let Card. Nichols (and Fr Christopher Thomas if he fancies a mitre) beware: Hughie will "piss" inside the tent, outside the tent, all around the tent, on top of the tent and all over the walls of the tent.

      That is what he does. He is a liability. In any other walk of life he would have got the sack. D&C has merely exported the problem.

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  9. I would be inclined to agree with 19:01. I think the bishop was simply testing the water and would then take soundings from the clergy and judge the reactions of the presbyterate to Dallat's reappearance. Furthermore the reaction of the wider public would be assessed and if deemed unfavourable then his re entry would be postponed. As a layman looking in from outside I think the reaction was not positive.

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  10. There have been many in the past, from Godfrey's day right up to the present who have got close to the seat of power in Westminster. It got them nowhere. If Fr Kennedy has any eye on power or promotion he can forget it.
    PE, Westminster

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  11. Ciaran Dallat for Coleraine?.... might not be any worse than yer part time man who is there at the moment

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    1. Well it would make for a refreshing change

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    2. What did the parishioners of Coleraine ever do to Bishop Treanor for us to deserve the carry on here now???

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    3. Anonymous 13.17 can you elaborate?

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    4. I'd love to know what sort of 'carry on' is taking place in Coleraine at the moment? Who is the PP there?

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    5. There is no pp in coleraine at the moment . There is a red acting as administrator. From what I've herd he has fought and fell out with everyone about the place

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  12. 'Punch and Judy' was a slang phrase years ago for what were perceived as the two main problems which could afflict a priest, and obviously translated are drink and women. Of course we would see that as hopelessly naïve nowadays, drink, drugs, boys, you name it, all being potential priests' problems. I can't help commenting that while greed has been mentioned here, greed referring to food only is the clerical vice which gets ignored
    So many priests deal with their problems by over-eating. It will never hit the news like the sexy ones have, but its presence as a dysfunctional coping strategy is everywhere in the church.

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  13. How true you are Father. I too have seen them come and go. I am thinking of Derek Warlock who was the very ambitious and all powerful private secretary to Cardinals Griffin and Godfrey. Cardinal Heenan got rid of him by promoting him to remove him. Warlock had his eye on the main prize when Cardinal Heenan died. He never got it and had to make do with the consolation prize of Liverpool. Im told that as he was dying his mind went and it was very distressing for those caring for him to hear what was coming out of his mouth. All careers end in failure. Ambitious Churchmen, just like the rest of us, have to let go of it all. Westminster Priest.

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    1. Father, how wisely you speak. The greatest end up in a state of incontinence and decay. How foolish we humans are. Todays enthroned are tomorrows pitiful.

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  14. How true,how true. There was a story which went around after the death of Cardinal Hume about one of his few possessions, a chess set. On the lid of the little casket which was used to store the chessmen was written "At the end of the game all players go into the same box"

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  15. 13th April @ 19.01pm

    God forbid that I ever enter a confessional and find you in it as the priest. You show no compassion or forgiveness. What goes around comes around.

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    1. You would be safer in a confessional with me than with some of my colleagues.

      Priest of D&C

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  16. Someone referred earlier to the eating habits of priests, in particular eating as a coping mechanism. Looking that the photo of Hughie and Fr Christopher Thomas processing down the aisle (or rather, waddling), it looks like they have both eaten too many pies ! Or in Hugh's case, canapes !

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