BY Mayowa Tijani
Stephen Vincent, a 40-year-old reverend (pictured with wife), has been sacked from his parish for having an affair with a a mentee three days after he was ordained as a priest.
The pair had sex on two occasions and exchanged as many as 80 text messages a day over a period of three months, many of them filled with sexually-explicit and underwear discussions.
Interestingly, Vincent’s wife has decided to keep their union, saying she has been taught to forgive and that everyone deserves a second chance.
“I can see how much he regrets it and I don’t think he needs punishing further. Steve is an amazing person who has made some silly decisions,” she said.
“We have three gorgeous children who mean the world to us, and we both stay strong for them.”
Three days after Vincent’s ordination as a priest, he and the parishioner met at a bar, went into a courtyard and engaged in consensual sexual intercourse, according to the clergyman’s disclosure before a panel of inquiry.
The duo met again at a pub in Newcastle on July 27, at which point, the panel said the woman made it clear to him she wanted sex, spotting only a silky gown and knickers to greet him, only to later accuse him of rape.
Vincent, who is now claiming unemployment benefits, told The Telegraph that he and his family had been given until the end of the year to leave their home.
The estranged priest has expressed his regrets, saying he owed everything to his incredibly strong wife.
“We have been on the brink of breaking up and it is the thing I regret most in my life,” he said.
“She is incredibly strong and has been remarkably gracious and I owe her everything. We are together but it is down to her and her fortitude, really.”
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