Our Common Mission of Safeguarding God’s Children – this is the theme of the international conference gathering representatives of Episcopal Conferences and professionals working in the field of child and youth protection in nearly 20 countries of Central and Eastern Europe.
It is another of the continental or regional conferences organized by the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors.
The conference is dedicated to issues related to the Church’s response to the crisis of the sexual abuse of minors. It will also be an attempt to look at a certain post-Communist mentality and its impact on the approach to the issue of the sexual abuse of minors by members of the Catholic clergy.
To be discussed during the conference are topics related to prevention, intervention (reporting abuse and implementating existing procedures described in the Motu Proprio Vos estis lux mundi) and proven best practices already adopted and in use in other parts of the Church, and what still needs to be implemented to ensure the maximum protection to minors.
Another aim of the conference is the exchange of experiences and the networking of people involved in the field of the protection of minors to establish closer collaboration.
The conference “Our Common Mission of Safeguarding God’s Children” held on September 19-22 in Warsaw ended with a proposal for further cooperation among the Churches of Central and Eastern Europe in the broadly understood work…
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Video message of His Holiness Pope Francis on the occasion of the meeting organized by the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors and by Polish Bishops’ Conference: Our common mission of safeguarding God’s children…
“Our Commission travels to Warsaw to be with the churches in Central and Eastern Europe, to listen to them, learn about their reality and help them chart a course forward in the protection of children…
Since early 2017, Professor Hanna Suchocka and other Members of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors have been organizing a regional meeting on the protection of minors for Central and Eastern Europe to…
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In less than two weeks, on September 19th, an international conference organized by the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors and the Polish Bishops’ Conference will begin in Warsaw. It will be attended by…
The conference is an initiative of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors (PCTM) and the Polish Bishops' Conference is co-organizing it.
The conference is co-financed by the Polish Bishops' Conference and the Saint Joseph Foundation PBC.
The Conference brings together representatives of Episcopal Conferences, major superiors of male and female religious institutes and lay people from nearly 20 countries of Central and Eastern Europe. The representative of the Catholic Aid Agency for Eastern Europe “Renovabis” will also take part in it.
The aim of the conference is to exchange experiences and establish closer collaboration among Church personnel and professionals from different countries and with the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors.
Using a workshop style, the regional meeting in Warsaw seeks to enable the exchange of experiences and the initiation of joint activities, as well as the closer collaboration of the local churches in Central and Eastern Europe in the field of preventing sexual abuse.
PRAYER AND TESTIMONIES |
A time of common prayer will open and close each day. There will also be a penance service, a concelebrated Liturgy, and a Vespers service in which testimonies will be heard from people who have experienced clergy sexual abuse. |
PRESENTATIONS |
Nine presentations are scheduled during the conference. According to the theme of each of the conference days, they will focus on the following issues: responsibility - accountability – transparency. Three presentations will be dedicted to each topic, demonstrating the issue in relation to: - the person of the bishop and his duties; the bishop’s relationships with other bishops; the relationship of the bishops with God’s people and society. |
GROUP WORK |
In addition to listening to the presentations, participants will work in language groups, sharing what the issue of the protection of minors looks like in the individual countries - both in terms of prevention and in the area of assistance procedures for victims. Participants will also look at the challenges faced by the Churches in this part of Europe. |
POPE FRANCIS |
On the first day of the conference, Pope Francis will address participants via a video message. |
The speakers were selected so that the conference would represent different continents, cultures and contexts in the Church.
PCPM - United States
Archbishop of Boston, President of the Commission, member of the Council of Cardinals that advises Pope Francis
Poland
Metropolitan of Poznan, President of the Polish Bishops’ Conference
Poland
Metropolitan of Gniezno, Primate of Poland, Delegate of the Polish Bishops’ Conference for the protection of children and youth