WASHINGTON — The Maryland Province Jesuits, a Catholic religious order with priests serving throughout the Washington area and across eight states, released a list Monday of priests in the order who have been credibly accused of abusing children since the 1950s.

The admission by the Jesuit order, which is widely known for educating youths in its high schools and colleges, comes as Catholic institutions are under tremendous pressure to respond more transparently to claims of sexual abuse by priests.

Religious orders — including the Jesuits, the Catholic church’s largest male order with almost 17,000 priests and brothers — have been particularly criticized by victims’ advocates for their opacity. Of about 48,500 priests nationwide, about 31 percent are from religious orders, with the other 69 percent are from dioceses, according to the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, a research center about church life, at Georgetown University.

In October, the major umbrella organization for male orders urged the groups to publish names of their accused members, and on Monday, the Maryland Province Jesuits did just that, naming five living Jesuits, three who left the order after being accused of misconduct, and five who have died.

One of the 13 priests, Neil McLaughlin, is believed to have abused children from the 1950s to the 1980s and faced at least one accusation from Massachusetts. He was not removed from ministry until 2007.

‘‘We are deeply sorry for the harm we have caused to victims and their families. We also apologize for participating in the harm that abuse has done to our Church, a Church that we love and that preaches God’s care for all, especially the most vulnerable among us,’’ the Rev. Robert M. Hussey, leader of the Maryland Province Jesuits, wrote in a letter accompanying the detailed list of names and accusations. ‘‘The People of God have suffered, and they rightly demand transparency and accountability. We hope that this disclosure of names will contribute to reconciliation and healing.’’

It was unclear whether all of the priests named on the list were ever reported by the Jesuits to law enforcement. Mike Gabriele, a spokesman, said the province only automatically reports an accusation to authorities if the victim is still a minor when he or she reports the abuse.

If the victim reports the abuse as an adult, Gabriele said, the province’s response varies by state. The Maryland province covers territory from Pennsylvania to Georgia.

The men accused of abusing minors served in high schools; in colleges, including St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, the University of Scranton, Wake Forest University in North Carolina; at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital; at churches in the District of Columbia and Baltimore; and other institutions.

Much of the abuse detailed in the reports dates back more than half a century. But other accusations are much more recent, and the list reveals that some of the Jesuit priests were not removed from ministry until well after 2002, when The Boston Globe published its expose of abuse in the church and US Catholic bishops committed to rooting out abusive priests.

The Jesuit order has long been respected for its emphasis on education; Jesuit priests run some of the country’s oldest and most prominent Catholic secondary schools and universities. After the Conference of Majors Superior of Men, the umbrella group for religious orders, urged orders to release accused priests’ names, the Jesuits started revealing them.

First the West Province and the Central and Southern Province released names on Dec. 7. The Northeast Province, which stretches from New Jersey to Maine, said it will publish names on Jan. 15.