ReligionSociety and CulturePennsylvaniaSexual Abuse

Bishop Admits A Few Priests Named In Sexual Abuse Report Are Still In Ministry

Pittsburgh's Bishop David Zubik said the diocese didn't find allegations against these few priests to be credible.
Associated Press

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The bishop of Pittsburgh’s Roman Catholic diocese said a few priests named in a soon-to-be-released grand jury report on clergy sex abuse are still in ministry because the diocese determined allegations against them were unsubstantiated.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that Bishop David Zubik reiterated to reporters Friday that “there is no priest or deacon in an assignment today against whom there was a substantiated allegation of child sexual abuse.”

Zubik said after the report’s release he would meet with parishioners whose priests may have been named in it to explain why the diocese’s own review did not substantiate any allegations.

Zubik spoke Friday with the Post-Gazette and KDKA-TV at a taping of the weekly current-events program KDPG Sunday Edition.

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David Zubik (left), bishop of the Diocese of Pittsburgh, and Cardinal Donald Wuerl, archbishop of Washington, arrive at the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, March 23, 2016. Zubik was the lead plantiff in a case brought by religious groups over contraception coverage.
Bloomberg via Getty Images

The state Supreme Court disclosed recently that the grand jury had identified more than 300 “predator priests” in the six dioceses that were investigated: Allentown, Erie, Greensburg, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Scranton. Together, those dioceses minister to more than 1.7 million Catholics.

The release of the nearly 900-page report has been held up by challenges by some priests and former priests. The court ruled that a version with some names blacked out can be made public soon. The Harrisburg Diocese has identified 71 priests and other members of the church who had been accused of child sex abuse and the Erie Diocese released its own findings on clergy abuse in April.

Zubik, who has been bishop for 11 years, earlier vowed to release the names of any members of his clergy named in the report, which he called “a sad and tragic description of events that occurred within the Church.”

Previous investigations found widespread sexual abuse by priests in the state’s two other dioceses: Philadelphia and Altoona-Johnstown.

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Before You Go

Abandoned Churches
Southwest Alabama, c. 1853(01 of12)
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(02 of12)
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This old Presbyterian church was likely built by slaves from a nearby plantation, just before the Civil War. There are separate entrances for men, women, and slaves along with a slave gallery inside.

"Imagine how much the world around this place would change in just a few short years and how different life would be for its congregation," Gomez writes.

For more on this site, click here.

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North Florida, c. 1885(03 of12)
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(04 of12)
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The Island Grove Methodist Church served north Florida's farmers, fishermen and citrus growers for nearly a century, Gomez says. But as the economy of the area changed and industry shifted further south, the church was left behind and forgotten.

"A building like this is a museum in its most real, unadulterated form," Gomez writes.

For more on this site, click here.

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Near Gainesville, Florida, 1890(05 of12)
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(06 of12)
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The Trinity M.E. Church served a rural citrus farming community in north Florida. The site was abandoned in the 1950s.

"I can’t help but imagine the final sermon delivered on the altar and the last person who shut the door and locked it," Gomez writes.

For more on this site, click here.

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Ben Hill County, GA c. 1875(07 of12)
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(08 of12)
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The interior of this church in rural Georgia is painted a striking color called "haint blue." According to Gomez, this color carried special spiritual significance for Gullah people, who were slaves from western Africa.

"The Gullahs believe that haints (or haunts) are malevolent and vengeful spirits trapped in between the world of the living and dead," Gomez writes. "These haints cannot cross water however, so, they created a rustic paint blend that resembled the color of water to confuse these spirits."

For more on this site, click here.

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Beaufort County, South Carolina, c. 1755(09 of12)
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(10 of12)
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The Sheldon Church has a fascinating history, stretching back to August of 1669, Gomez reports. That year, a lawyer named Stephen Bull set sail from Sheldon, England, to make the treacherous journey to the Americas. Three ships left England, but Bull's was the only one to land in present-day South Carolina. Bull's descendants would go on to build this Greek Revival-style church, which played a role in both the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. It was torched by Union troops in January 1865 and has remained abandoned since then.

For more on this site, click here.

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Glynn County, Georgia, c. 1870s(11 of12)
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(12 of12)
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Former slaves built the Needwood Baptist Church roughly a decade after the Civil War. "Imagine for a minute how it must have felt to have been able to openly observe their faith for the first time," Gomez writes. Right next door, the slaves' descendants built a one room schoolhouse, which was the only place that the community could receive education until desegregation in the 1960s.

For more on this site, click here.

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