A review into the handling of clerical child sex abuse allegations in the Diocese of Raphoe has concluded that "significant errors of judgment" were made by successive bishops in responding to the accusations.
Bishop of Raphoe Dr Philip Boyce said he fully accepted the recommendations contained in the review, which was undertaken by the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church.
In a statement, Dr Boyce admitted that during the past decades there had been "very poor judgments and mistakes made.
"There were horrific acts of abuse of children by individual priests, that should never have happened, and if suspected should have been dealt with immediately in the appropriate manner," he said.
"Insufficient emphasis was placed on the needs of victims, often in the misguided attempt to protect the reputation of the Church. There were frequent cases of delays or non-reporting of allegations and complaints about child sexual abuse," he added.
Dr Boyce said he was "truly sorry for the terrible deeds that have been inflicted on so many by a small minority of priests.
"We offer our humble apologies once more and seek their forgiveness for the dreadful harm that has been done to them, their families and friends."
Three heads of Raphoe Catholic diocese, which includes most of Co Donegal, including Dr Boyce, were criticised for their handling of clerical child sex abuse allegations in the report on child protection practices, which was published this morning.
Former Bishop Séamus Hegarty, who retired as Bishop of Derry last week for health reasons, and his predecessor, Bishop Anthony McFeely, also come under fire for their response to accusations of clerical child sex abuse.
Dr Hegarty succeeded Dr McFeely in Raphoe in 1982 and became Bishop of Derry in 1994. Dr Boyce became Bishop of Raphoe in 1995.
The report on Raphoe is one of six such reports to be published today as part of an all-island review of child protection practices in all Catholic institutions on the island of Ireland.
Reports are also being published this morning following similar board reviews of Derry diocese, Dromore (Down), Kilmore (Cavan), Ardagh Clonmacnoise (Longford, Leitrim, Offaly) dioceses as well as on Tuam archdiocese.
The Raphoe review said that in dealing with allegations, too much emphasis was placed on the situation of the accused priest and too little on the needs of their complainants.
"Judgements were clouded, due to the presenting problem being for example, alcohol abuse and an inability to hear the concerns about abuse of children, through that presenting problem," it said.
"More attention should have been given to ensuring that preventative actions were taken quickly when concerns came to light," the report added.
The Raphoe review examined all case files from 1975 to 2010 to determine how allegations and concerns were dealt with.
Its purpose was also to interview key persons involved in child safeguarding, judge how cases are currently assessed, how the statutory authorities are notified and determine if there are any current risks to children.
Its purpose was also to interview key persons involved in child safeguarding, judge how cases are currently assessed, how the statutory authorities are notified and determine if there are any current risks to children.
The review concludes that the diocese now has a robust safeguarding policy and procedure in place for safeguarding children, that files are kept n a satisfactory and orderly fashion, that there is a prompt referral system to the state authorities and good co-operation with the Garda Síochána and the Health Service Executive (HSE).