abuse - search results

Organized by the Office of Child and Youth Protection and Safe Environment, the Diocese of Phoenix held a special rosary and Mass today at the Diocesan Pastoral Center in downtown Phoenix to honor Child Abuse Prevention Month in April. Following Mass, which was celebrated by Fr. Nelson Libera, a special pinwheel celebration was held in the courtyard near St. Mary's Basilica. A pinwheel is an uplifting symbol of childhood, and it represents all our efforts to ensure a healthy and safe environment of children in our community.

PHOENIX -- The Church’s efforts to help abuse victims heal has been steadfast since shortly after the first incidents came to light more than two decades ago. But the need for love and compassion likely will never end. “Abuse really hurts a person in the depth of their soul that they don’t forget,” said one survivor, who remains anonymous at her request following Sunday’s semiannual Mass of Healing and Reconciliation for Survivors of Abuse and Their Families; her voice lowering as a tear ran down her face in the courtyard of Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral, in Phoenix. Yet, she said her faith has remained strong.

Punishing and condemning those guilty of abuse is an act of charity, Pope Francis said.

The new projects and developments at the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors represent "a major shift toward a more impact-focused direction," said its president, Cardinal Seán P. O'Malley of Boston.

The pope's safeguarding commission, preparing to move into a fresco-ceilinged palace in Rome's historic center, must not be merely engaged in "PR," but become a refuge for those abused by clergy and silenced by the church, said leading safeguarding expert Jesuit Father Hans Zollner.

Pope Francis has updated the procedures for investigating allegations of sexual abuse or the cover up of abuse, specifying that the leaders of Vatican-recognized international Catholic lay associations and movements have the same responsibilities over their members that a bishop has over the priests of his diocese.

Bishop John P. Dolan and the Office of Child and Youth Protection invite you to the 2023 Lenten Mass of Healing and Reconciliation for...

Establishing clear procedures for protecting vulnerable people against abuse "must become a priority in every local church," Pope Francis said.

It is not enough to ask people who have suffered abuse for their forgiveness, Pope Francis said.

Bishop John P. Dolan and the Office of Child and Youth Protection invite you to the 2023 Lenten Mass of Healing and Reconciliation for...