LOUISVILLE — Roman Catholic priests across the country are trying to decide how to extend the church's new sexual abuse policy to the third of the nation's priests that belong to religious orders.

        Some 14,968 of the 45,191 priests in the U.S. belong to more than 300 orders, such as the Franciscans, Dominicans and Jesuits, whose activities range from public teaching and preaching to cloistered prayer.

        Leaders of these religious orders will hold a national conference in Philadelphia from Aug. 7 to 9, where they will be urged to adopt the guidelines approved earlier in June by the bishops for diocesan priests.

        The bishops pledged then that no known sexual offenders will ever again work in the Catholic Church in the United States.

        “It is very important that religious communities adopt some thing almost identical,” Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles told bishops at their meeting in Dallas, where they approved the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.

        Church observers say they have little doubt that most or all religious orders will comply with the bishops' new charter — and some already are doing so.

        “Our policy is very much in line already with the policy the bishops have adopted,” said the Rev. Michael Higgins, provincial for the Chicago-based Holy Cross Province of the Passionist order, which operates a monastery and the St. Agnes parish in Louisville.

        The Archdiocese of Louisville has 186 diocesan priests, 65 religious priests and 83 religious brothers, according to its most recent directory. Even now, an order priest needs a bishop's permission to minister in his diocese. And since the Dallas meeting — as bishops have begun scouring their personnel files for any past allegations against diocesan priests that would require action under the new directive — they've been asking religious orders to do the same.

        “Basically what is happening is the bishops are writing all the religious superiors and saying, "Is there anything I should know?”' said the Rev. Thomas Reese, editor of the nationalCatholic magazine America.

        The Archdiocese in Louisville has been hit this year with nearly 150 lawsuits, alleging past sexual abuse by clerics. The accused include two deceased Conventual Franciscan priests — the Revs. Kevin Cole and Daniel Emerine — and a Franciscan brother who has long since left the order, Francis Dominic.

        Religious priests staff several local parishes — such as the Conventual Franciscans at St. Anthony Church in Louisville and the Dominicans at St. Louis Bertrand in Louisville and St. Rose in Springfield, Ky. Religious priests and brothers also teach at schools, such as DeSales and St. Xavier in Jefferson County.

        Brian Reynolds, chief administrative officer for the Archdiocese of Louisville, said priests working at an archdiocesan school or parish would be subject to the rules adopted by the bishops, whether or not their religious order adopts the policies.

        “To the degree that there is an assignment related to bishop and diocese, they would be subject to the charter,” Mr. Reynolds said. “To the degree their assignments are related to their order, it would be the responsibility of their order.”

        Mr. Reynolds said any priest who abused even once would have their “faculties,” or permission to conduct public ministry, removed by Archbishop Thomas Kelly, who is himself a member of the Dominican order.

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