| Admin_History | Born in 1940 in Glasgow of a family which had moved to the city from the Western Isles. Started his training for the priesthood at the age of 14 at Blairs College and moved to Cardross Senior Seminary 4 years later. Ordained priest for Glasgow Archdiocese in 1964. Served in two city parishes in Glasgow before returning to Blairs College, the Junior Seminary, as Procurator (equivalent of Bursar) and Spiritual Director. Transferred to the Diocese of Argyll and the Isles in 1974 where he took up appointments in various island and mainland parishes- Dunoon, Fort William, South Uist, Eriskay- and played a prominent part in the wider community life of the Western Isles. Became Bishop of Argyll and the Isles in 1990. Resigned as Bishop in 1996 because of a major scandal in his personal life. Married and emigrated to New Zealand where he died in 2005.
Roderick Wright was ordained priest during the later stages of the Second Vatican Council and his training years were profoundly affected by the changes which it introduced into the Catholic Church everywhere.
The role of Bishops had altered. In the past they had often been distinguished for their learning and spirituality and had been distant ceremonial figures. Church leaders were now anxious to identify men whose life experiences gave them a deep understanding of the real lives of the majority of Scottish Catholics. Roderick Wright’s appointment as Bishop fitted in well with this view of the episcopal role. Scottish Catholics were much more integrated into the wider national community. A Catholic Bishop was a public figure, especially in the Western Isles where Catholics were numerically strong. Bishop Wright’s family background had enabled him to fit in well in Gaelic-speaking parishes like South Uist after earlier work in developing urban areas like Drumchapel in Glasgow. As Bishop he was active in local politics, dealing with very complex local educational issues but also affected by the controversial presence in the area of important military installations, British and American. In his public role, he seemed like a natural leader but the crisis in his own personal life found him ill-equipped to deal with the public’s appetite for sensation. A Catholic Bishop who simply disappeared from his Diocese and was found by the tabloid journalists with a former woman parishioner whom he subsequently married, inevitably became the subject of national scandal and gravely damaged the Church. His resignation was the result. |