Visitation parishioners gather at Archdiocese of Cincinnati asking for truth, transparency and change

CINCINNATI (OH)
WCPO - ABC 9 [Cincinnati OH]

July 22, 2025

By Paula Christian

Nearly two months after police escorted an NFL player from a West Side church, parishioners continue to ask questions about a priest’s behavior and if their pastor knew about it

CINCINNATI — Controversy continued at a Green Township church as Our Lady of the Visitation parishioners and other local Catholics gathered for a vigil outside the Archdiocese of Cincinnati’s downtown office.

Roughly 40 people met at noon on Tuesday. They held signs, prayed aloud, lit candles and sang to themes of “putting away falsehood,” “clergy tempted to protect reputation over truth” and “parishioners wounded by spiritual truth.”

“The ongoing struggle of getting transparency and accountability that seems to be never-ending,” said Kathy Weyer, a coordinator for Greater Cincinnati Voice of the Faithful. “We’ve gone through three different bishops now … and in all regards we continue to have a lack of openness to the laity about what’s going on in their own parish.”

The scandal began on May 31, when two Green Township police officers escorted NFL player Jake McQuaide out of Mass after he stood up to ask Chancellor Jason Williams for answers about a parish priest, Fr. Martin Bachman.

Bachman was accused of having pornographic images and links to role-playing sites “involving sexual assault, group sex, rape and occult themes” on a laptop located in the parish office.

Williams came to the church to announce the findings of the archdiocese’s investigation into Bachman and read a letter from Archbishop Robert Casey.

“Several concerns have been brought to the attention of the archdiocese. These have been investigated, and no wrongdoing — either criminally or ecclesiastically — has been substantiated … consequently, like gossip, the spreading of rumors is sinful, and we should all work to overcome this tendency of our fallen human nature,” according to Casey’s letter.

[PHOTO: Our Lady of the Visitation parishioners and other local Catholics hold a prayer vigil at the Archdiocese of Cincinnati’s downtown office on July 22, 2025. – Ray Pfeffer]

The archdiocese had investigated the allegations, and while no wrongdoing “had been substantiated,” Bachman would be taking a “previously planned sabbatical,” according to the letter.

Then, a week later on June 6, Bachman admitted that he had “viewed adult pornography.” In a letter to parishioners, he wrote that he had “engaged with some video games of an inappropriate nature,” but never at the office and never on a parish-owned device.”

“I am deeply ashamed and regret this,” Bachman wrote.

Since then, parishioners have been upset about a perceived lack of transparency and accountability from the archdiocese about what happened.

[Photo: Our Lady of the Visitation parishioners and other local Catholics hold a prayer vigil at the Archdiocese of Cincinnati’s downtown office on July 22, 2025. – Ray Pfeffer]

But they said at the vigil, “We gather outside the archdiocese not in defiance or opposition — but in devotion and reverence … we are here because we love the church and believe it can do better.”

In response, archdiocese spokesperson Jennifer Schack gave this statement: “We fully support prayers for truth and transparency. Truth is a virtue that leads us to God, and we wholeheartedly join others who are praying for truth. In addition, we greatly value transparency when it is accompanied by an individual’s right to confidentiality.”

Upset parishioners started a private Facebook page where they wrote about withholding donations and attending Mass elsewhere.

[PHOTO: Julie Edsall drove from Dayton to attend a prayer vigil for truth, transparency, and change at the Archdiocese of Cincinnati’s downtown office on July 22, 2025.]

As of midday Tuesday, 846 people had signed a petition for transparency and leadership accountability at Divine Mercy Parish and Schools, which includes Our Lady of the Visitation, St. Joseph, and St. Jude.

Parishioners are set to launch a new petition on Tuesday calling for the resignation of the pastor, Fr. Donald Siciliano.

“We no longer tolerate our friends and neighbors being labeled sinners for simply asking questions and demanding accountability,” according to the petition.

[PHOTO: Kathy Weyer of Greater Cincinnati Voice of the Faithful attended a prayer vigil at the Archdiocese of Cincinnati’s downtown office on July 22, 2025.]

“Our primary concern is the trust and moral authority essential for leading our parish. Nothing could have prepared ourcommunity for the divisiveness your leadership has caused. This visceral reaction is a direct result of the rhetoric you and the archdiocese have chosen, which has labeled members of our community, like us, as ‘gossipers and rumor spreaders.’ This is unacceptable, and it will no longer be tolerated,” according to the petition.

“It’s not easy to stand up against the culture of silence,” said Ohioans for Protection co-founder Teresa Dinwiddie-Hermann, who attended the vigil. “I’m so proud of these parents who are standing up for what is right. Because looking for transparency and accountability is for the protection of our families.

[PHOTO: Teresa Dinwiddie-Hermann of Ohioans for Child Protection attended a prayer vigil at the Archdiocese of Cincinnati’s downtown office on July 22, 2025.]

“I think transparency means we have to be completely honest,” said Julie Edsall, who drove from Dayton to attend the vigil. “We’ve got to cleanse out of our church the evil. We’ve got to cleanse our church of the wrongdoing. As long as we protect and cover that up, the church suffers. That was not the way Jesus intended it to be.”

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