Catholic priests in England and Wales are being issued with photo cards, ending the days when a dog collar and an air of piety were enough to confirm their credentials.
The plastic, credit card-sized document includes a passport-style photograph of the priest, an expiry date and a barcode, which, when scanned, provides information on the holder. The cards are signed by the bishop of the priest’s diocese.
They replace traditional letters of commendation written in Latin, known as celebrets, that enable travelling priests to say Mass or hear confession in other parishes or dioceses.
“The church has always had a system so that priests can travel, showing that they are in good standing,” said the Rev Christopher Thomas, the general secretary of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales. “It’s a very ancient system of authorisation and we’re modernising it.”
He said dioceses had either issued the cards since the system was agreed earlier this year, or were in the process of doing so. All clergy would soon become card-carrying priests, he added.
Cases of imposter priests were not uncommon, he said. In 2016, a Los Angeles man was jailed for a second time after being convicted of pretending to be a priest. Erwin Mena, who called himself “padre”, heard confessions, officiated at weddings, took prayer meetings, and defrauded churchgoers out of thousands of dollars.
Five years ago, a German man dressed as a cardinal in order to mingle with genuine cardinals assembling at the Vatican to elect a new pope. Ralph Napierski, who called himself Basilius, was rumbled when security officials noticed his cassock was too short.
Some Catholics carry an identity card bearing their name and the words “I am a Catholic. In the event of an accident or emergency please contact a Catholic priest.”
