24 February 2013
Last updated at 16:11 GMT
Cardinal O'Brien is the Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh
Cardinal
Keith O'Brien, Britain's most senior Roman Catholic cleric, has missed
Sunday Mass after being accused of inappropriate behaviour.
Bishop Stephen Robson told St Mary's Cathedral in Edinburgh the Church "cannot not be saddened" by the news.
Three priests and one ex-priest have reportedly complained
about the leader of the Scottish Catholic Church's behaviour some 30
years ago.
The Scottish Catholic Church said the cardinal, 74, contested the claims.
He is also taking legal advice, it added.
Cardinal O'Brien is due to retire next month when he turns 75.
He will have a say in who succeeds Pope Benedict XVI when the
pontiff stands down on 28 February. He is Britain's only representative
in the election for a successor.
Pope Benedict XVI has now given his final Sunday blessing at the Vatican before he steps down.
Pope informed
Cardinal O'Brien was due to celebrate Mass in St Mary's Cathedral to celebrate the eight years of Pope Benedict holding office.
Continue reading the main story
Analysis
Robert Pigott
Religious affairs correspondent, BBC News
The cases raised by Cardinal O'Brien's four accusers go back
to the 1980s - so why are they being raised now just as he prepares to
leave for Rome and the election for a new Pope?
It seems that it wasn't a conclave that prompted the
complaints initially - the letter complaining about Cardinal O'Brien was
written to the Vatican ambassador, Archbishop Antonio Mennini, in the
week before the Pope's unexpected resignation.
It seems to have been timed instead for Cardinal O'Brien's planned retirement in the next few weeks.
Two of the priests mentioned the "immense power" an active
bishop has over his clergy, but with the Pope's resignation they have
decided to publicise their allegations, evidently in an attempt to
prevent Cardinal O'Brien taking part in the conclave.
It's unlikely to work.
Firstly any decision by Cardinal O'Brien to stay at home
might be read as an admission of guilt, and secondly, Church law makes
it very hard to prevent a cardinal who is qualified to vote from doing
so.
But he did not appear and Bishop
Robson, who is auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of St Andrews and
Edinburgh, made a statement at the cathedral.
He said: "A number of allegations of inappropriate behaviour have been made against the cardinal.
"The cardinal has sought legal advice and it would be
inappropriate to comment at this time. There will be further statements
in due course.
"As always in times of need such as this we cannot not be saddened by the events of the last 24 hours.
"It is to the Lord that we turn to now in times of need."
A spokesman for the Vatican said "the Pope is informed about the problem and the question is now in his hands".
The Observer reported that the three priests and one former priest
- from the diocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh - complained to the
Pope's representative to Britain, nuncio Antonio Mennini, of what they
claimed was the cardinal's inappropriate behaviour towards them in the
1980s.
The four complained in the week before 11 February, when Pope
Benedict announced his resignation. The complainants have now called
for the cardinal's immediate resignation.
The former priest claims Cardinal O'Brien made an
inappropriate approach to him in 1980, after night prayers, when he was a
seminarian at St Andrew's College, Drygrange, the Observer says.
The complainant, who is now married, says he resigned as a priest when Cardinal O'Brien was first made a bishop.
He reportedly says in his statement: "I knew then he would
always have power over me. It was assumed I left the priesthood to get
married. I did not. I left to preserve my integrity."
Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor says the church has become more transparent in dealing with allegations
A second statement from another complainant says he was living
in a parish when he was visited by O'Brien, and inappropriate contact
took place between them.
A third complainant alleges dealing with what he describes as
"unwanted behaviour" by the cardinal in the 1980s after some late-night
drinking.
And the fourth complainant claims the cardinal used night prayers as an excuse for inappropriate contact.
BBC religious affairs correspondent Robert Pigott says the
allegations seem to have been publicised now because the four
complainants do not want Cardinal O'Brien to go to the Vatican to
participate in electing the new Pope.
There is only a "very remote" chance that he will not go, as
not only has he denied the allegations but it is very difficult to
prevent a cardinal from exercising his papal vote, unless he is detained
by the state, our correspondent adds.
Petition protest
Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, the former archbishop of
Westminster, told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show he was "very sad" to hear
of the claims made against Cardinal O'Brien.
"The cardinal has denied the allegations so we will just to have to see how that pans out," he said.
He added: "There have been other cases which have been a great scandal to the Church over these past years.
Continue reading the main story
Cardinal Keith O'Brien
- Born on 17 March 1938 in Ballycastle, County Antrim, Northern Ireland
- Ordained a priest on 3 April 1965
- Obtained a bachelor of science degree in chemistry and mathematics from the University of Edinburgh and a diploma in education
- Employed by Fife County Council as a teacher of mathematics and science from 1966 to 1971
- Also served as assistant parish priest and as chaplain of St Columba Secondary School in Cowdenbeath
- Spiritual director of St Andrew's College in Drygrange from 1978 to 1980
- Rector of St Mary' College, Blairs, Aberdeen from 1980 to 1985
- Ordained Archbishop of Saint Andrews and Edinburgh in 1985
- President of the Bishops' Conference of Scotland March 2002 until 2012
- Proclaimed Cardinal by John Paul II on 21 October 2003
- Due to retire after he turns 75 on 17 March
"I think the Church has to face up - has faced up - to some of them very well indeed...
"I don't know what the Church will do. I think Cardinal
O'Brien is very near to retirement and I suspect that his resignation,
which is already with the Pope, because he's nearing 75 and every bishop
has to retire - then presumably that will be accepted."
Cardinal O'Brien, who was born in Ballycastle, Co Antrim, has been the Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh since 1985.
He has been an outspoken opponent of plans to legalise
same-sex marriage and was named "bigot of the year" by gay rights
charity Stonewall last November, prompting a storm of controversy.
Meanwhile, nearly 10,000 people in the United States have
signed a petition calling on a senior Catholic clergyman to not
participate in the election for the next Pope.
Cardinal Roger Mahony has been accused of helping priests suspected of sexual abuse to escape detection.
The Los Angeles archdiocese, of which he was formerly the
head, has paid out millions of dollars in compensation to victims of
child sex abuse.
COPY http://www.bbc.co.uk
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