That mission gained notice in the early 1980s when members of the Salvadoran National Guard abducted, raped, and killed two of its female members, Sister Dorothy Kazel and lay missionary Jean Donovan, as well as two nuns from New York City. Sheldon faced public controversy in 1984 when he asserted authority over the Bread of Life Community, a religious group which was accused of cult-like practices. After an investigation, he chastised the group for unequal treatment of female members and for its doctrines; the group's official ecclesiastical authorization was withdrawn in 1985. On January 28, 1992, Sheldon was appointed the Bishop of Steubenville by Pope John Paul II. As bishop, he presided over the newest and most sparsely populated of Ohio's six Catholic dioceses. After reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75, Sheldon resigned as Bishop of Steubenville on May 31, 2002. He was succeeded by Father Robert Daniel Conlon, a priest of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati.