Vatican to assess guidelines on priests with children

New guidelines approved by the country’s Catholic bishops for priests with children could be adopted by the Vatican, it has emerged.

They were produced by the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference following discussions with a Galway-based psychotherapist, Vincent Doyle, whose late father was a priest.

The guidelines, yet to be published, state that a priest who fathers a child should not walk away from his responsibilities — legal, moral, and financial.