Pope John Paul II accepted Bernard Cardinal Law’s resignation as head of the Boston archdiocese yesterday as a yearlong sexual abuse scandal continued to shake the American Catholic community to its core.
“I am profoundly grateful to the Holy Father for having accepted my resignation as archbishop of Boston,” Law, 71, said in a written statement released by the Vatican after his meeting with the pope.
“To all those who have suffered from my shortcomings and mistakes, I both apologize and from them beg forgiveness.”
Law’s resignation came as his scandal-wracked archdiocese, the third-largest in the country, contemplated bankruptcy while victims stepped forward to accuse priests of molesting them.
“Thank heaven,” said David Clohessy, director of Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests. “I hope there will be thousands of Boston Catholics and hundreds of Boston survivors who will feel better as a result.”
Law gave no specific indication of what he would do next. He hinted at “a quiet departure.”
The embattled, Harvard-educated prelate is currently both a cardinal and an archbishop. He will lose the status of archbishop – the prelate in charge of a diocese – but not that of cardinal, and he will continue to be supported by the church.
One of the pope’s closest American advisers, Law could take another church post – and he can vote in a papal election until he turns 80.
But his resignation does not free him from civil lawsuits pending in Boston, nor from a subpoena to testify before a grand jury.
Law, who has been accused of putting abusive clerics in jobs where they continued to prey on kids, had met with the pope in April and offered to resign.
John Paul accepted his second resignation after 58 Boston-area priests called on Law to quit this week and the lay reform group Voice of the Faithful said he’d lost all moral authority.
“Today is a day of great sorrow, but it’s also a historic day and a historic time,” said Steve Kruger, the group’s leader.
“But this is not a clean sweep,” he told The Post. “We are calling for a national cleaning out, a national purification.”
The Vatican, meanwhile, which described the pope as “deeply saddened” by the affair, appointed Bishop Richard Lennon, 55, to run the archdiocese until a successor is named.
In Boston, victims said they were still interested in bringing their attackers to justice.
“I’m not interested in what happens with the church. I am interested in criminals being held responsible for their crimes,” said Susan Gallagher, 43, who settled a suit for $250,000 in 1998 after saying she was sexually abused at a retreat house by a Salesian priest.
READY TO SERVE
Here are some facts about Bishop Richard Lennon, named by Pope John Paul II to temporarily replace Bernard Cardinal Law:
AGE: 55
CURRENT JOB: Rector of St. John’s Seminary in Brighton, Mass.
EDUCATION: Bachelor’s and master’s degrees from St. John’s Seminary.
RÉSUMÉ: Served at St. Mary’s of the Nativity in Quincy, Mass., and St. Mary’s of the Assumption in Brookline, Mass.
FRIENDS SAY: “He’s caring and compassionate. First and foremost, a man of deep prayer. Everything he does is rooted in his love for God and church.”
MANDATE: Not just a caretaker. Will have the full authority and rights of the archbishop of Boston.
NEXT APPEARANCE: Sunday Mass at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross.
MISSION STATEMENT: “I pledge to do all that I can … to work towards healing as a church and furthering the mission of Jesus Christ within our community … Pray for me as I pray for all of you.”