CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Catholic
January 23, 2019
By Cardinal Blase Cupich
On Nov. 23, 2018, the Vatican announced that Pope Francis asked Cardinal Oswald Gracias, archbishop of Bombay and member of the Council of Cardinals; Archbishop Charles Scicluna of Malta, adjunct secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith; Jesuit Father Hans Zollner, founder and president of the Center for Child Protection at the Pontifical Gregorian University and member of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors; and Cardinal Cupich to serve on an organizing committee to plan a historic global meeting at the Vatican, scheduled for Feb. 21-24, 2019, on the topic of “The Protection of Minors in the Church.” Victim-survivors of abuse by clergy and members of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, including lay women, lay men and clergy, are involved in the planning.
Pope Francis has made it clear that this meeting will be an assembly of pastors, not an academic conference. The aim is to provide clear direction and concrete steps so that when the bishops return to their home countries around the world, they will know exactly what the church expects of them regarding the prevention of abuse, the need to provide care for victim-survivors and the obligation to make sure abuse is not covered up.
Participants have received a questionnaire as a means of gathering information that will establish a common starting point, and they have been asked to meet with victim-survivors in their respective countries. The Holy Father has assured us of his presence throughout the meeting, which will include plenary sessions, working groups, prayer, listening to the testimonies of victims, a penitential liturgy and a closing Mass.
The abuse of minors is a global problem that requires a global response by the church. Those participating in the meeting will be called to take responsibility not just for their particular church and the clergy and religious under their care and supervision, but for the church as a whole.
As Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, who will serve as moderator of the meeting, observed in a Dec. 19, 2018, La Civilta Cattolica article:
“The entire church must choose to live in solidarity, above all with the victims, with their families and with the ecclesial communities wounded by the scandals. As the pope has written, ‘If one member suffers, all the members suffer together’ (1 Cor 12:26), and the commitment to protect minors has to be taken on clearly and effectively by the entire community, starting with those in the highest positions of responsibility.”
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