Conspiracy of Silence 2004

Father Sweeney, Patrick Casey, a gay Catholic priest living with HIV, commits suicide. His death motivates local investigative journalist David Foley, Jason Barry, to write a story that publicly identifies Sweeney as HIV-positive.

At the local seminary, two near-ordainments students are expelled because one, Daniel, Jonathon Forbes, was seen leaving the room of the other, Niall, Paudge Behan. Niall is gay and Daniel is straight, and they engaged in no sexual activity, but were expelled for appearances. Daniel returns home, torn between his calling to the priesthood and his love for his ex-girlfriend Sinead, Catherine Walker.

Daniel meets with Foley, who writes a follow-up article exposing a covered-up AIDS protest that Sweeney had staged at the Vatican three years earlier and Daniel’s dismissal. He also alleges that cardinals close to the Pope are engaged in sexual relationships and calls on the Church to re-examine its celibacy requirement for priests. The local bishop, Michael Quinn, Jim Norton, pressures the editor of the local paper not to run the second story. The editor acquiesces but after reading the story sends it to the Irish Times, which prints it.

The next day the bishop, his aide, Foley and Daniel appear together in a live television debate. Before the broadcast, agents of the Church threaten to harm Foley’s family unless he retracts his story on the air. Bishop Quinn offers to reinstate Daniel if Daniel is willing to admit he has been wrong. On-air Foley capitulates but Daniel does not, asking the bishop if he himself practices celibacy. When the bishop refuses to answer, Father Sweeney’s partner, former priest Matthew Francis, John Lynch, confronts Quinn with Sweeney’s suicide note in which Sweeney discloses that Quinn and he had had an affair.

At film’s end, Daniel is back at home with Sinead.