Cardinal Donald Wuerl, Archbishop of Washington, enters church for Mass at St. Mathews Cathedral, Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2018 in Washington. The pope accepted his resignation following accusations that he covered up sex abuse scandals. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)

By Lara McCoy and Elly Yu

Cardinal Donald Wuerl is stepping down as head of the Archdiocese of Washington. The Vatican announced on Friday that Pope Francis had accepted Wuerl’s resignation, but asked him to remain as administrator of the archdiocese until a successor is named, according to reporting from the New York Times.

In a letter announcing the resignation, Pope Francis said that he was proud of the way Wuerl had conducted himself as leader in the church.

“You have sufficient elements to ‘justify’ your actions and distinguish between what it means to cover up crimes or not to deal with problems, and to commit some mistakes,” the pope wrote in the letter, posted on the website of the Archdiocese of Washington. “However, your nobility has led you not to choose this way of defense. Of this, I am proud and thank you.”

Wuerl also issued a statement, saying that the move will allow the Washington archdiocese to move forward.

“The Holy Father’s decision to provide new leadership to the Archdiocese can allow all of the faithful, clergy, religious and lay, to focus on healing and the future.” Wuerl’s statement said.

Pressure had been building on Wuerl to step down after a Pennsylvania grand jury report raised questions about how he handled clergy sexual abuse cases while he was the bishop of Pittsburgh from 1988 to 2006.

Wuerl wrote in a Sept. 11 letter to priests that given the circumstances, it’s “clear that some decision, sooner rather than later, on my part is an essential aspect so that this archdiocesan Church we all love can move forward.”

In his letter, Wuerl acknowledged “the horror of the clergy abuse of children and the failures in episcopal oversight.”

The grand jury report found that more than 1,000 children were abused in six Pennsylvania dioceses since the 1940s. Wuerl was not accused of abuse himself, but of helping to protect some abusive priests. In some cases, the report details how Wuerl worked to remove priests accused of abusing children, but in other cases, reassigned or reinstated them.

Wuerl, 77, had served as Archbishop of Washington since 2006.

This story originally appeared at WAMU.

Previously:
Cardinal Wuerl Will Ask Pope Francis To Accept His Resignation
Pressure Mounts For Cardinal Wuerl To Resign In Wake Of Grand Jury Report On Sex Abuse