Bishop Wielgus speaks:

The Roman Catholic prelate who resigned two days after becoming Warsaw’s archbishop denied Saturday that he had concealed his cooperation with the communist-era secret police from Pope Benedict XVI.

Nearly a week after Bishop Stanislaw Wielgus stunned Poles by resigning his new post minutes before his formal installation, he issued a statement reiterating the oath he made to the papal envoy in Warsaw in December. He also released a copy of the oath.

In the oath, as quoted by the PAP news agency, Wielgus said "I swear to God" that during meetings and talks with the secret security and intelligence forces in the 1970s, "I never spoke against the church, nor did I do or say anything bad against any clergy or lay people."

Wielgus’ statement Saturday was a response to the papal nuncio, Archbishop Jozef Kowalczyk, who accused the bishop of withholding the truth about his collaboration from the Vatican.

"The information offered by Bishop Wielgus did not suggest any collaboration," Kowalczyk said, adding that future bishop candidates should have their communist-era files checked before their nominations.