A federal judge gave final approval Wednesday to a bankruptcy settlement that will require the Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg and its insurers to provide $18.25 million in restitution to survivors of child sexual abuse in the church. 

Negotiations over the settlement spanned almost three years, with the diocese and a committee representing sexual abuse survivors reaching an agreement in November. 

Patrick Duggan, an abuse survivor who served on this committee, called Wednesday’s legal resolution “bittersweet” — noting that it secured money for damages and numerous commitments from the diocese but also leaves some survivors without the chance to confront church representatives in court.

“You don’t get the opportunity to ask two questions: Why did they pick me?” Duggan said. “And why did you cover it up?”

‘Addressing the horrors of clergy abuse’

Bishop Ronald Gainer, head of the Harrisburg diocese, said the church “recognizes and is fully committed to…