Leaders react, promise action to church in crisis

(CNN) -- The leaders of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States have been remorseful and defensive in recent weeks in the face of overwhelming public criticism over their handling of sexual abuse allegations against American priests.

Pope John Paul II summoned several U.S. cardinals to the Vatican this week to discuss the crisis, which erupted last January when it was revealed that the Boston archdiocese knew of sexual abuse allegations against one of its priests, moving him from parish to parish all the same. Since then, there has been a wave of allegations against priests and church officials across the country.

Before traveling to Rome, many U.S. church leaders publicly addressed the situation, offering their apologies, perspective and prospects for the upcoming meeting with the pope. The following are some of their comments:

'Changes required to restore ... trust'

"Regrettably, I and many others have been late to recognize the inadequacy of past policies, the dimensions of the crisis and the changes required to restore a sense of trust. The repeated public calls for my resignation are a clear signal that many feel that my leadership efforts in this area have been inadequate ... The crisis of clergy sexual abuse of minors is not just a media-driven or public perception concern in the United States but is a very serious issue undermining the mission of the church."

-- Boston Cardinal Bernard Law

'A wonderful opportunity'

"I think [the church has] been a model to other organizations in terms of dealing with this issue. [The Vatican meeting is] a wonderful opportunity [to make sure] that this kind of crime and sin of certain child abuse does not occur."

-- Baltimore Cardinal William Keeler

'He just feels broken-hearted'

"[The pope] knows that Catholics in the United States have been tremendously faithful, tremendously loyal and tremendously helpful. I think he just feels broken-hearted by the fact that we've let them down. I hope that the expectations of the Catholic people in the United States are not too exaggerated because it's only a two-day meeting, and you're not going to be able to solve everything in a two-day meeting."

-- Washington Cardinal Theodore McCarrick

'A much better understanding'

"It is clear that today, we have a much better understanding of this problem. If in hindsight we also discover that mistakes may have been made as regards prompt removal of priests and assistance to victims, I am deeply sorry."

-- New York Cardinal Edward Egan

'Perceived as secrecy'

"[I regret] efforts to respect the confidentiality of the victim and the accused may have been perceived as secrecy ... I hope and pray that you can always continue to say, 'I'm proud to be a Catholic.'"

-- Detroit Cardinal Adam Maida

'A long process'

"Restoring confidence is a long process. And so all we can do is pronounce and proclaim what we're doing and what we intend to do."

-- Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony

'Credibility has been weakened'

"You must say that our credibility has been weakened to some extent. We need to look at that honestly and seriously to see not only how we can repair that breach of trust but also how we can look to the future and strengthen it in the future."

-- Bishop William Skylstad, vice president of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops