Editor's note: This page has received numerous letters recently concerning the issue of priests who have been disciplined by the Catholic Church for acts of sexual abuse against children. This letter from Most Rev. Daniel E. Pilarczyk, Cincinanti Archbishop, originally appeared Monday in the Catholic Telegraph.

My dear sisters and brothers in the Lord,

The purpose of this letter is to bring our local church of Cincinnati up to date on the matter of child abuse by priests of the archdiocese.

First of all, please know that, as far as I am able to determine, there is now no priest active in ministry in this archdiocese who has ever sexually abused a minor.

You may remember that in March of 2002, when the question of sexual abuse by clerics began to be an urgent issue, I said in a public forum that, in accord with our stated and published policies, we had returned five abusive priests to ministry.

Our policies at that time called for priests who had been accused of abusive behavior to have their cases studied by a response team. If the accusations were substantiated, they were sent for therapy. In certain circumstances, with appropriate restrictions, they could be reassigned. This was in accord with the best psychological thinking of the time.

Now things have changed. Because of the norms that were drafted by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in 2002 and subsequently approved by the Holy See, it is no longer possible for priests who have offended even one time to remain in good standing for priestly ministry in the United States. I supported these norms, and I will obey them.

In view of that, the five priests who had offended have now all been removed from priestly ministry. They have been placed on indefinite administrative leave. Their permanent removal from priestly ministry will take place according to the rules of canonical procedure.

Bringing all this about has not been easy. Our local Child Protection Decree was in the process of revision when the USCCB charter and norms were passed. Our decree had to be adjusted to harmonize with what the Holy See finally approved. The specific requirements of canon law were not immediately clear. There were questions about how any action on our part would affect processes that were under way in the context of civil law. However that may be, I believe that we have now done what needed to be done as regards those offenders who had been returned to active ministry.

I know that there is a lot of hurt and anger around the archdiocese because of these matters. Some people think that things were not handled well. Some are staying away from Mass on Sunday because of their hurt. Some people want to know why we have not acted more quickly. Some are angry because they believe that one or more of the priests in question should be restored to ministry. Some think that offending priests have been disproportionately assigned to certain areas of the archdiocese. Some have chosen to express their displeasure by withholding financial contributions.

I cannot say that everything that was done as regards these matters was done as well as it could have been. Nor can I say that I will now do everything that people want me to do. Some things I am not able to do. I can pledge, however, that I will continue to carry out the demands of civil and canon law and that I will try to be as sensitive as I can be to the hurts that the members of our local church are experiencing. In return, I ask for your patience and understanding.

As regards the lawsuits that have been filed against the archdiocese, we will deal with them as directly and as responsibly as we are able.

Once more I wish to express my sorrow that priests of this local church have taken advantage of young persons. I am ashamed that such things have happened. In the name of our Archdiocese of Cincinnati, I apologize to and ask forgiveness of all those who have suffered from the crisis we are currently experiencing.

Can I guarantee that no further offences of this kind will ever happen again? Unfortunately, I cannot. Can I guarantee that no past offenses have gone unreported and unresponded to? No, I cannot guarantee that. I can only request once more: If any person has suffered abuse that has not yet been reported and attended to the victim should make him or herself known to the office of the chancellor of the archdiocese.

Finally, I request that you offer support and encouragement to your priests. This has not been an easy time for them. They have sometimes been unfairly put under suspicion. They have had to suffer because of what some of their colleagues have done. But they have continued to offer themselves to the service of the Lord and His people. Please offer them your thanks and your support.

What lies ahead of us? Is this nightmare over? I don't know. I certainly hope so. But whatever comes, we will try to respond with justice and compassion, firm in the knowledge that the blessing of the Lord is in all this somewhere.

And perhaps you could say a prayer for me sometime.

Daniel E. Pilarczyk, Archbishop of Cincinnati