[Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk of Cincinnati has appropriately criticized the attempt to judge by today’s standards those bishops who in the past routinely reassigned clerical sexual predators to other parishes. This article explores whether our theological tradition points to standards according to which the bishops could be held accountable. Drawing primarily on the theology of the Doctor of Reform, St. Peter Damian, the study demonstrates how an improper understanding of magisterial authority creates the conditions for scandal, and, secondly, suggests a strategy for reestablishing magisterial credibility.]