Who did the bishop do?

Blair Ensor at Stuff reports:

In a rare move the former head of the Anglican Church in Wellington has surrendered his licence as a priest.

Bishop Tom Brown told The Dominion Post yesterday he voluntarily gave up his right to officiate earlier this month “to be loyal to the church and maintain the church’s integrity”.

The announcement comes amid speculation surrounding the 69-year-old’s split with wife Dwyllis Brown.

You don’t give up being a priest because you separate. You give up, because you were having an affair, I’d say. I have no first hand knowledge – but what else could it be?

“I have a private life and I’m endeavouring to get on with that to deal with the difficulty of separating from my wife.

I think it is the private life which as been the problem!

Retired priest Sir Des Britten said church members were struggling to come to terms with Dr Brown’s decision to surrender his licence.

“It’s deeply shocked a lot of people and we feel a bit let down,” Sir Des said.

“There’s lots of gossip circulating and this will go on for a while, I suppose.”

What will be interesting is what period of overlap there was, with his role as Bishop.