You may have some the scuffle that erupted in recent weeks over plans to exhume the body of British Cardinal John Newman (a likely saint) and move him to a more accessible location where his remains can be venerated by the faithful.

Not usually a big deal, though some think Newman would be upset to leave behind his closest friend, Ambrose St. John (a man), whom he explicitly directed that he be buried next to. That, of course, fueled talk that the two men were lovers-even if they were celibate. The head of the gay British group Outrage! called the transfer “ghoulish, sordid and distasteful.”

Now Catholic News Service is reporting that the definitive Newman biographer has blasted the “homosexual lobby” for raising a stink over the whole issue, and flatly rejects the notion that Britain’s most famous convert was gay. “The only reason for which celibacy could be a sacrifice was that Newman, as every normal man, wanted to get married,” said the article in the Vatican’s official newspaper, written by the Rev. Ian Ker.