MARTINSVILLE, Va. – A Southside Virginia priest has been removed from his post after maintaining a blog critical of the Catholic Church’s handling of the sexual abuse scandal.

The Rev. Mark White, whose blog reaches more than 1 million readers, was removed on Monday. He served as the priest of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Martinsville and St. Francis of Assisi in Rocky Mount.

The Catholic Diocese of Richmond says White has since been reassigned as chaplain to different state and federal prisons within the dioceses. His removal follows a months-long dispute with the head of the Diocese of Richmond and other church officials over the blog.

The Martinsville Bulletin reports that the Bishop of Richmond ordered late last year that White remove a blog he had authored that often was critical of the way the hierarchy of the church has responded to the sexual abuse scandal. He initially complied but White later continued the blog amid the coronavirus outbreak.