Former governor-general Peter Hollingworth has given up his permission to officiate as an Anglican priest.
A church investigation last month found Dr Hollingworth committed misconduct by knowingly allowing paedophiles to remain in the church when he was Brisbane archbishop, but concluded he was "fit for ministry" if he apologised to victim-survivors.
In a statement released on Friday, Dr Hollingworth said he had returned his permission to officiate, "commonly granted to retired priests, allowing me to conduct services at my local parish as well as marriage, funerals and baptisms".
"As Archbishop of Brisbane from 1990 to 2001, I was ill-equipped to deal with the child abuse issue and, like some other church people, was too defensive of the church on the advice of lawyers and insurers," Dr Hollingworth said.
Dr Hollingworth said he was concerned his continuing function as a bishop was a "cause of pain to survivors".
"I want to end distress to them, and division within the church," he said.
Dr Hollingworth said he notified the church leadership of his decision earlier this week.
The former archbishop was Australia's 23rd governor-general.
Hollingworth says he has 'lived with failures' since archbishop tenure
The Professional Standards Board of the Anglican Church had been considering whether Dr Hollingworth should have his permission to officiate removed, but ultimately found he should be allowed to retain his holy orders.
"There will be no unacceptable risk of harm to any person if the Respondent [Dr Hollingworth] continues to hold the role office or position he currently holds," the board found.
It recommended the Anglican archbishop of Melbourne reprimand Dr Hollingworth for his decision to retain abusive priests in the ministry, and apologise to victim survivors.
Dr Hollingworth accepted the board's recommendations.
Beth Henrich, a survivor of abuse by Anglican cleric Donald Shearman, said she felt sorry for Dr Hollingworth and the Anglican Church, "but they have brought this on themselves".
"This could have been resolved many, many years ago," she told Australian Story.
In 2018, the ABC revealed Dr Hollingworth was the subject of multiple complaints from survivors of abuse at the hands of Anglican clergy and teaching staff in the Brisbane diocese.
He resigned as governor-general in 2003 after a series of revelations over his handling of sexual abuse allegations while he was the archbishop of Brisbane.
A 2002 inquiry by the Anglican Diocese of Brisbane found Dr Hollingworth allowed paedophile priest John Elliot to continue working until retirement, despite Elliot admitting to Dr Hollingworth he had sexually abused two boys.
In line with the 2002 inquiry, the recent standards panel found Dr Hollingworth had committed misconduct by permitting Elliot to remain in the ministry when he knew he posed a risk to the safety and wellbeing of children.
Dr Hollingworth was also found to have committed misconduct by permitting cleric Donald Shearman "who he knew had sexually assaulted a child, to retain his permission to officiate".
Today Dr Hollingworth said he had "lived with my failures every day" since his tenure as archbishop.
"Many times I have acknowledged that I made mistakes and issued apologies," he said.
"My regrets have become even more profound over the years, as we have all gained a better understanding of the impact of child sexual abuse through the Royal Commission into Institutional Child Sexual Abuse and other investigations.
"But I did not commit a crime. I did not cover up sexual abuse. And I was not an abuser."
