The Rev. Terence McAlinden, left, in an undated photo. Chris Naples is seen in the background. (Photo courtesy Chris Naples)

Calling the actions of one his priests "inexcusable," Trenton Bishop David M. O'Connell on Friday publicly apologized to a South Jersey man who says he was sexually assaulted hundreds of times in the 1980s and 1990s by the diocese's former youth leader.

In a four-paragraph statement posted on the diocese's website, O'Connell offered his prayers for the alleged victim, Chris Naples, and for "all those affected by the horrible scourge of sexual abuse of minors."

O'Connell issued the statement hours after NJ Advance Media disclosed that Naples had reached a $610,000 settlement with the diocese in August. Naples filed suit against the diocese five months earlier, alleging church officials knew the Rev. Terence McAlinden was a danger to children and allowed him to remain in ministry anyway.

Naples said in a story published Friday that an apology was one of his key demands during the negotiations but that he had not yet received one.

"The Diocese of Trenton does everything in its power to prevent, address and correct the sexual abuse of minors and to make the church and its institutions safe environments for the young and vulnerable," O'Connell wrote. "Father McAlinden's actions were inexcusable and a source of great pain to Mr. Naples and his family.

"As bishop of the Diocese of Trenton, I extend to Mr. Naples my heartfelt apology for what he has had to endure," the bishop added. "I offer my prayers for him and for all those affected by the horrible scourge of sexual abuse of minors."

The Rev. Terence McAlinden, left, declined to speak to a reporter who knocked on his door earlier this year. The Diocese of Trenton has paid $610,000 to a Burlington County man who says McAlinden molested him for more than a decade. (Ed Murray | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

Though it is not unusual for bishops to apologize privately to abuse victims or to make public declarations about sexual abuse in general, it is rare for church leaders to speak out on individual cases, according to victims' advocates.

Naples, told of the apology Friday afternoon, called it a "pretty big milestone."

"I'm still hesitant to trust, but maybe this is the start of something positive," he said. "This could be the Trenton Diocese's way of being a leader for all the other dioceses to do the right thing."

O'Connell's statement does not address the diocese's own culpability in the case.

In 1992, under now-deceased Bishop John C. Reiss, the diocese reached a cash settlement with Patrick Newcombe, now of North Carolina, who said McAlinden molested him from 1980 to 1985 in his capacity as youth group leader. As part of the agreement, Newcombe was to keep the settlement quiet, he said in 2011.

Had the diocese removed McAlinden from ministry when Newcombe came forward, the alleged abuse of Naples might have stopped, Naples has said. Naples, 42, of New Gretna, said McAlinden began sexually abusing him at age 13 and that it continued into his adulthood.

When he publicly came forward with the allegations in 2007, the diocese investigated them and found them to be credible, permanently suspending McAlinden from ministry.

The 73-year-old priest lives in Little Egg Harbor, not far from St. Theresa Roman Catholic Church, where he once served as pastor. Earlier, McAlinden served as director of the diocese's youth group. In his first assignment, he was an assistant pastor at Our Lady of Victories Church in Sayreville.

Two years ago, the diocese settled with a third alleged victim who said McAlinden molested him at the Sayreville church in the 1960s.

Though suspended, McAlinden officially remains a priest. The Vatican is now considering whether to laicize him, or remove him from the priesthood permanently, said Rayanne Bennett, a spokeswoman for O'Connell.

Meeting another of Naples' demands during settlement talks, Bennett said, the bishop's apology is to be read during Masses at St. Theresa, where some of the sexual abuse allegedly took place, and at Visitation Roman Catholic Church in Bricktown, which Naples attended growing up.

Naples said he has yet to process how he feels about O'Connell's statement, but he said he expects it will be gratifying for family members who remain devoutly Catholic.

"It's very positive for people like my mother, my sister," Naples said. "This is their faith. It's got to be reassuring to them that the bishop has gone public and is following through."

Mark Mueller may be reached at mmueller@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MarkJMueller. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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