If you are one of more than 3 million Roman Catholics in Pennsylvania, or even if you are not, you can’t help but be stunned, saddened and sickened by the startling disclosures in the report by an investigative grand jury that was released this week.

With some names redacted (blacked out), the report detailed that there are more than 1,000 child victims at the hands of more than 300 accused clergy representing a systemic cover-up that goes back 70 years. At a news conference releasing the report, state Attorney General Josh Shapiro lamented that there are scores more priests and victims who have not yet been identified.

The 18-month investigation involved six dioceses including Allentown and Scranton, and comes on the heels of other state grand jury reports of the Philadelphia and Johnstown-Altoona diocese that revealed a pattern of abuse and cover-ups.

In many cases, however, the statute of limitations has expired, so criminal charges may never be brought against many of the offenders. I am hoping that state legislators, who have so far resisted efforts to eliminate the statute of limitations provision on these types of crimes, will yield to an outraged public crying “enough is enough.” The church has lobbied against changes to the law, which in itself is shameful.

Aside from modifying the statute of limitations provision, other recommendations from the grand jury include: Expanding the window in which abuse victims can sue their abuser and the church; clarifying the penalties against institutions for failing to report abuse and banning civil confidentiality agreements that prevent victims from reporting abuse to law enforcement.

The 844-page report is breathtaking in its scope, charging that bishops urged victims not to report cases of abuse and implored police officers not to investigate them. The report also notes that in the 15 years after the scandal broke wide open in the Boston Archdiocese, not enough is being done to remedy the problem. Even now, in the face of irrefutable evidence, some current and former bishops are criticizing the grand jury’s work and conclusions and maintain there have been no cover-ups.

“Despite some institutional reform, individual leaders of the church have largely escaped public accountability,” the grand jury wrote.

Our news story on the report details some of the specific allegations, and some of them make for borderline X-rated reading, so I will not detail them again here.

“Priests were raping little boys and girls, and the men of God who were responsible for them not only did nothing; they hid it all for decades,” the report said.

In sweeping many of these cases under the rug, the report says some accused priests were promoted, while many others were transferred to other parishes where they continued their predatory practices. Through it all, parishioners were left in the dark as to why the transfers occurred.

In a letter to be read at Allentown Diocese churches this weekend, Bishop Alfred Schlert apologizes to Catholics for the way the church mishandled cases in the past and reassured them that the diocese has better protections in place to prevent recurrences.

“I also apologize to you, the faithful of the diocese, for the toll this issue has taken over the years: the sadness, the anger, the doubts, and the embarrassment it may have brought you as a Catholic. I ask for your forgiveness, and I thank you for your perseverance and for your courageous witness to our faith,” the bishop said in his letter to parishioners.

Schlert is named in the report as an enabler, an accusation he officially denied in a statement to the grand jury. When he was a key aide to then Bishop Edward Cullen, the report said that Schlert was aware of some of the accusations in the Allentown Diocese.

Attorney General Shapiro pointed to Schlert as an example of someone who was promoted to higher office despite failing to take allegations against accused priests as seriously as he should have.

Four of the five counties in the Times News area — Carbon, Schuylkill, Northampton and Lehigh — are part of the Allentown Diocese, while the other — Monroe — is part of the Scranton Diocese. There are about 260,000 Catholics in 89 parishes in the Allentown Diocese and about 350,000 in 120 parishes in the Scranton Diocese.

Thirty-seven priests from the Allentown Diocese were named in the report. After the grand jury report was released Tuesday, the diocese released its own list, which contains 15 additional priests. Forty-nine priests were identified in the report from the Scranton Diocese, which named an additional 10 on Tuesday. None of the priests remains in active ministry. Most of those named were either dismissed from the priesthood, resigned, retired or have died.

Both dioceses now have a “zero-tolerance” policy. This means that if there is credible evidence of abuse, law enforcement officials are notified immediately.

This highly critical grand jury report must represent a line of demarcation. Transparency must become the new watchword to ensure that if the church is to have a prayer of restoring its credibility, it must admit the monstrous past practices of its clergy, make things as right as possible for victims and their families and set up practices and procedures so this can never happen again.

This is not just a local Pennsylvania issue; this is a systemic worldwide problem that requires the strongest possible response from church leaders, starting with Pope Francis, who has not been aggressive enough in attacking this cancer.

By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com