Fr. Martin Bachman has resigned as parochial vicar of the Our Lady of Fatima Family of Parishes and currently has no priestly faculties or assignment, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati says. The archdiocese confirmed the change after WCPO 9 reported that Bachman had requested to step away from active ministry. He remains a priest; the archdiocese has not disclosed when he submitted his resignation or what prompted it. WCPO 9’s report said his name had disappeared from a family parish bulletin shortly before the resignation became public.
A new assignment, then a resignation
The assignment was a return to ministry after Bachman left Our Lady of the Visitation in Green Township in May 2025, a departure that prompted parishioners to question the archdiocese about his online activity. The archdiocese later assigned him to the Piqua-area family. Its Northwest Deanery Family 6 listing identifies that group as Our Lady of Fatima and names five parishes: St. Boniface and St. Mary in Piqua, St. Teresa of the Infant Jesus in Covington, St. Patrick in Troy, and Transfiguration in West Milton.
The underlying controversy centered on adult-content concerns, not a publicly established criminal case. WCPO reported that Bachman acknowledged viewing adult pornography and engaging with some inappropriate video games, while denying that he did so at the parish office or on a parish-owned device. The archdiocese has said the allegation that he used a parish computer to view pornography was false and that neither Our Lady of the Visitation nor its parish family had issued him a computer. Green Township police reported no evidence or investigation of criminal wrongdoing; the archdiocese has said it investigated concerns and did not substantiate wrongdoing.
What the published review remit does—and does not—say
The archdiocese’s published description says its Review Board advises the archbishop on allegations of child abuse and abuse of vulnerable adults by clerics, employees, and volunteers. That stated remit describes those categories; it does not establish how the separate adult-content concerns involving Bachman were handled. The archdiocese has not provided details about the resignation or described any finding tied to it. The Review Board’s published remit therefore should not be treated as an explanation of this case.
The resignation closes Bachman’s assignment in the Piqua-area family, but it does not answer the questions that arose after his departure from Green Township. WCPO reported that parishioners sought greater transparency, including through a petition and a prayer vigil at the archdiocese’s downtown office in 2025. The available statements leave unresolved both why Bachman requested to step away and what process led to the archdiocese’s current decision.
