Picture shows the construction site of a Catholic church made of snow in the Bavarian village of Mitterfirmiansreut, near the German-Czech border
Picture shows the construction site of a Catholic church made of snow in the Bavarian village of Mitterfirmiansreut, near the German-Czech border, December 27, 2011. Reuters

The Roman Catholic Church in Ireland has said that it is looking into claims that a priest inadvertently showed gay pornographic images during a PowerPoint presentation to the parents of children who were set to receive their first communion.

Priest Martin McVeigh has been accused of showing a series of indecent images of men while using a projector March 26 to a group of 26 parents at a grade school in Pomeroy, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, the BBC reported.

The parents, who were shocked to watch as many as 16 sleazy images on the big screen, told reporters that the images were from the memory stick the cleric inserted into the computer port before the presentation. However, the priest said that he had no knowledge of the images. I don't know how it happened but I know what happened, McVeigh was quoted as saying.

He was visibly shaken and flustered, a parent told the BBC. He gave no explanation or apology to the group and bolted out of the room. The coordinator and the teachers then continued with the presentation.

The meeting reportedly continued in the absence of the priest. Twenty minutes later, he returned to wrap up the meeting and said that children get lots of money for their Holy Communion and should consider giving some of it to the church, a parent said.

The parents demanded the suspension and barring of the priest from their children's first communion, according to the Associated Press.

Cardinal Sean Brady, the leader of Ireland's 4 million Catholics, said the priest facing the allegations insisted that he didn't know how the pornographic images had got saved in his memory stick.

The Cardinal issued a statement Monday admitting that inappropriate imagery was inadvertently shown by a priest at the beginning of a PowerPoint presentation, CNN reported. The archdiocese immediately sought the advice of the PSNI (Police Service of Northern Ireland) who indicated that, on the basis of the evidence available, no crime had been committed, the statement said.

The priest is cooperating with an investigation of the matter on the part of the archdiocese, Brady said.

Ireland police said no criminal offenses were disclosed and anything else was a matter of concern for the Church.

The Church authorities have replaced McVeigh with another priest to take part in the children's Confessions this month. However, it remains to be seen whether McVeigh would still oversee their First Communions in May as previously scheduled.