Cardinal Law Indicates He Won't Resign

BOSTON -- Defying editorials and pressure from parishioners and some priests, Cardinal Bernard Law indicated Friday that he would not be resigning as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Boston.

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"I know there are people who believe my resignation is part of the solution," Law wrote in a letter to priests released Friday by the archdiocese. "This distresses me greatly to have become a lightning rod of division when mine should be a ministry of unity."

Citing "very reliable sources," WCVB-TV reported that Law had actually offered his resignation to the Vatican, but it was either not accepted or discouraged. Archdiocese spokeswoman Donna Morrissey would not confirm whether that was true.

"My desire is to serve this archdiocese and the church with every fiber of my being," Law wrote. "This I will continue to do as long as God gives me the opportunity."

Law, 70, had come under fire in recent weeks after documents released by the archdiocese shoed that he and other priests in the church hierarchy apparently knew of allegations of sexual abuse by priests but moved those priests to other parishes rather than report the allegations to authorities.

"In a desire to encourage victims who might not desire to enter a criminal process to come forward to us, we did not communicate cases to public authorities," Law wrote. "While our reason for not doing so seemed reasonable, I am convinced it was not adequate."

Monday, documents were released that detailed the archdiocese's handling of the Rev. Paul Shanley, accused in 26 complaints of molesting children. While one of the documents described Shanley as a "very sick person," he was moved around the diocese. Law also wrote him a positive retirement letter.

In an afternoon press conference at the cardinal's residence, Morrissey told reporters and a crowd of protesters that Law wants to heal the growing divide in the church.

"The cardinal is clearly very concerned. He continues to meet with victims and their families," Morrissey said. "The letter addresses the fact of how troubling it is when there is division and there needs to be unity.

"He is in private meetings and in prayer to find the best way to serve the church and to serve the community in this difficult time, and he's making sure that we don't find ourselves in that position again."

After documents were released in the case of defrocked priest John Geoghan that showed he was also moved from parish to parish, Law announced a new, zero-tolerance policy that mandated turning over the names of priests accused of abuse. The archdiocese released the names of more than 80 priests to state authorities who are alleged to have molested children.

Morrissey said that Law will continue to work with victims of abuse.

"It's time that we take a deep breath. This is not a story that is going to end today or tomorrow. People who are in pain have been in pain for a great many years," Morrissey said. "We need to make sure that to the best of our ability we can get the resources to those victims, their families and the other people in the archdiocese of Boston who are in pain."

A Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday found 60 percent of Massachusetts Catholics felt Law should resign, echoing the results of earlier surveys. The recent revelations also prompted The Boston Globe to call for Law's resignation. The Boston Herald and other publications had called for him to step down earlier.