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A priest has published a poem calling his parishioners "entitled" and blaming their "unlikeable" nature for his dwindling congregation.
Father Pat Brennan said "the righteous, the clique, the worthy" had forced him out after nine years at the Holy Family Catholic Church in Coventry.
The poem, titled Not I Lord Surely! and signed off as his "parting gift", was shared in the church newsletter alongside a message saying he had fond memories from his time as parish priest, but that you "can't please all the people, and those few who have been vocal in criticism in and outside of the parish have contributed to my leaving". He blamed them for putting new members off attending.
"Gossip flows from holy lips," he wrote in the poem, blaming "A mix of disgruntled, unlikeable, / entitled offended, who don't want to know. / Better than you, holier too, / tutting for a living, whispering about you-know-who..." He also asked: "What makes people not come to church? / Could it be the people who already go? / The righteous, the clique, the worthy, / the disdainful look given, the thought 'you're in my seat' / the unfriendly, so that the stranger remains always so."
Maura Murray-Reeve, a parishioner, shared the poem in a residents’ Facebook group, describing it as "extremely disappointing" that Brennan felt pushed out. She said he had been the parish priest for almost ten years and was always very welcoming.
She wrote in the Facebook post: "His letter of 'goodbye' and poem, from the newsletter, are below. It's disgusting to think that he was treated so poorly by a very sad minority. They should be ashamed of themselves."
Others attested to the unsavoury nature of some parishioners. Kat Smith said one of the reasons she stopped going to church was the way she "was looked down on and judged".
The Archdiocese of Birmingham said: "Father Pat is an experienced and much valued member of the clergy. He has been running three parishes for several years, which is a large workload." It said he would continue serving his other two parishes and a new priest had been appointed to Holy Family.
