First: Any sexual misconduct by lay employees or clergymen of the Church is a grave sin and does serious damage to innocent people. Second: Church leaders have an equally grave responsibility to act on allegations quickly, thoroughly and fairly.

Since 1991, the Archdiocese of Denver has had in place an effective sexual misconduct policy, one of the earliest in the country. This policy is readily available to anyone who seeks a copy, and has been for years. Every lay archdiocesan employee must review and sign this policy as a condition of service. So must every member of the clergy. Any violation is grounds for immediate termination or suspension. Moreover, we do not, and would not, assign any known pedophile to parish service, or any other service involving young persons.

Our archdiocesan Office of Catholic Schools mandates that every Catholic schoolteacher must undergo fingerprinting and background screening as a condition of his or her employment. Likewise, every Catholic Charities employee and volunteer who works with children must undergo a background check by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.

Every allegation of sexual abuse against any archdiocesan lay employee or clergyman is treated seriously and with compassion. Every allegation involving sexual misconduct is investigated by an archdiocesan conduct-response team, and whenever circumstances require, we notify local law enforcement authorities and cooperate promptly.

In short, I want the people of the Church in northern Colorado to know that we work hard to protect them, their families, their children and their parishes. We do not, and will not, dismiss the gravity of sexual misconduct, and we take every reasonable measure to prevent it before it occurs.

We face two tragedies in every Church scandal involving abuse.

The first is the bitter damage done to the children and families who now must bear the wounds of sexual misconduct. No apology is adequate. Nothing can diminish or explain away their pain. We need to keep them in our prayers, support them in their suffering and do everything in our power to prevent such criminal behavior in the future.

The second tragedy is the damage done to the mission of the Church, the credibility of the Gospel, and the witness of tens of thousands of good priests — the overwhelming majority of our clergy — who serve their people unselfishly and well. They need our prayers and reinforcement too, especially as we approach Holy Thursday, the day Our Lord first instituted the priesthood.

May God grant all of us — lay, religious and clergy alike — the grace and character to live our lives according to the principles we say we believe.

The archdiocesan sexual misconduct policy is under review. The current policy is available from Greg Kail, secretary for communications, at 303-715-3123.

Any allegation of sexual misconduct by priests, deacons, religious or seminarians should be directed to Msgr. Thomas Fryar, vicar for clergy, at 303-715-3197. Any allegation of sexual misconduct by lay archdiocesan employees should be directed to Barbara Buchanan, director of human resources, at 303-715-3193.