One Priest: For what it's worth, this story was brought to my attention. The story of a priest, Kenneth Lasch, who sailed into the prevailing winds on sex abuse.

Lasch, who first heard about the accusations [against his predecessor] from another priest in 1985, met privately with alleged victims and sought advice from a psychiatrist about pedophilia before taking the unusual step, in 1995, of laying out the matter to his entire congregation . . .

"I had no choice," Lasch said in an interview last week, recalling his decision to speak out long before the issue of priest sex abuse appeared on the national radar screen . . .

At about the same time, Lasch wrote to Bishop Frank Rodimer and urged him to convene a summit at which sex abusers, victims, lay people and even the media would be invited. Rodimer never responded to his letter, Lasch recalled last year.

Two years ago, when numerous reports surfaced of U.S. Catholic bishops hiding priests accused of abuse, Lasch was heralded as a visionary whose openness should serve as a model . . .

In response to the scandal, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops instituted a strict new policy on sex abuse, but Lasch said it didn't go far enough by failing to provide full accountability for past wrongs.

"I don't think we have to be afraid of the truth," Lasch said.

A nice counterpoint.