Religion: Question of Conscience

• Share

A personable, soft-spoken Negro named Wiley Rowe, 29, in the reverse collar and black habit of a priest, was unfrocked last week by Detroit police for passing a bad check in a jewelry store. A former theology student, he had changed his mission in life but not his garb ("The clerical outfit is impressive, and immediately people tend to trust you"). Having thus accumulated more than $35,000 in less than six months, he confided cheerfully that he had no qualms about posing as a priest. "You see," said Wiley, "I'm an agnostic."