The letters overwhelmingly pressed for a zero-tolerance policy toward sexual abusers among the clergy, including those who had committed even a single offense in the past. As you already know from news reports, that's the approach I took with me to Dallas, that's the way most bishops voted, and that's the result — I strongly believe — which the meeting last week achieved.

Events like Dallas take place within an envelope of noise involving hundreds of persons who are directly involved (the bishops and, in this case, sexual abuse victims) and thousands of commentators and interpreters (the press, bishops' staffers and activists on every sort of issue).

Since I was there and took part in it personally from beginning to end, let me tell you what I saw.

I saw the bishops take responsibility for their role in today's sexual abuse disaster in the first minutes of Bishop Wilton Gregory's opening speech. Not all — in fact, few — bishops acted with the disregard and indifference Bishop Gregory outlined. But as a body, the bishops are accountable. As a body, we should have done far better than we did in protecting God's people. Every bishop I spoke with understands that.

I saw a real sorrow among bishops for the suffering of so many innocent victims; an awareness of the gravity of sexual abuse; a repentance for clergy sins and crimes of the past; a commitment to cooperating promptly and fully with civil authorities in any criminal case; and a determination to do everything possible to prevent this tragedy in the future.

I saw a hard and good plan emerge from the meeting — a policy that does in fact mean "zero tolerance." Disagreements over laicizing abusers from the past are important, but they take nothing away from the fact that the U.S. bishops have committed themselves to a no-exception policy. Any priest who has ever committed sexual abuse of a minor, now or in the past, will be permanently removed from ministry. He will never be able to work as a priest again. He may not celebrate Mass publicly. He may not wear clerical garb. He may not have any assignment. He may not in any public way present himself as a priest. These sanctions are permanent.

I also saw the bishops bind themselves to a means of policing that policy through a national office for the protection of children and a national review committee. From Dallas forward, no bishop and no diocese will be able to avoid compliance or claim ignorance of how the Church has committed herself to respond.

As we adjust and improve our archdiocesan procedures to reflect the new national policy, I promise to keep you fully informed through my column, and fully involved through the Archdiocesan Pastoral Council and direct conversation.

Finally, I want to ask for your prayers. As I've said sincerely to so many of the people who've written me — I need them; Bishop Gomez needs them; our priests, deacons and seminarians need them. Please remember us in your prayers so that those of us called to serve the Church and God's people will do so in a manner worthy of His Son.

The revised bishops' charter can be reviewed on the Web at www.usccb.org.