Cuenin told the packed church, where worshipers stood shoulder to shoulder. ''We are walking in darkness. It's like we are in exile.''

Law instituted the ban last Tuesday after Cuenin announced a meeting at Our Lady Help of Christians Church during which priests were to air reservations about the archdiocese's fund-raising drive. The pastor has previously been criticized by the archdiocese for his position on homosexuality and the ordination of women, opinions he articulated in a September article in The New Yorker.

Law has not given a reason for the ban, nor responded to a letter from Cuenin seeking an explanation. His spokeswoman, Donna M. Morrissey, declined to identify Law's reasoning.