Cardinal O’malley at safeguarding summit: ‘The wrongs done to God’s people must be corrected’

Cardinal O’malley at safeguarding summit: ‘The wrongs done to God’s people must be corrected’ - TDPEL Media Cardinal Seán O’malley told a safeguarding summit this week that “the wrongs done to God’s people must be corrected.” Preaching at Mass on Sept.20 at a conference in Warsaw, Poland, the archbishop of Boston called for an end to clerical abuse and cover-ups. “We are gathered here because so many of our brothers and sisters have suffered at the hands of abusive clergy who have perpetrated evil acts by using their office to abuse others or to cover up such abuse. And many times, those who have suffered have been rejected in their suffering when they spoke out,” he said. “This cannot be what Jesus wants of his Church; this cannot be the Church of a loving and reconciling God. Abuse and its cover up must stop and the wrongs done to God’s people must be corrected.” O’malley, the president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, was speaking during a four-day meeting, “Our Common Mission of Safeguarding God’s Children,” supported by the pontifical commission and the Bishops’ Conferences of Central and Eastern Europe. The 77-year-old Capuchin cardinal praised the “courage and witness” of abuse survivors, linking them to martyrs such as the Korean saint Andrew Kim Taegon, whose feast fell on Sept.20, and Polish priest Blessed Jerzy Popiełuszko. “The courage and witness of so many survivors and their families and their deep concern that others are not harmed in a similar way should be recognized and welcomed. We give thanks to God for their witness and their presence among us,” he said. “In some unexpected way, they are writing the next chapter in the history of those who suffer for the faith. They take their place among the courageous witnesses of the faith, of Andrew Kim and companions, of Fr. Jerzy Popiełuszko and so many others whose sufferings in the name of truth are known to God alone. The Warsaw meeting opened with an address by Archbishop Stanisław Gądecki, president of the Polish bishops’ conference, who said that the volume of incidents from Central and Eastern Europe “astonishes” the Vatican’s doctrinal office, which oversees clerical abuse cases. “New tragedies are being uncovered, and the number of cases coming from our region in recent years to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith astonishes this experienced institution,” he said. He described the steps that the Polish Church had taken in response to a series of abuse scandals, highlighting the bishops’ appointment of Archbishop Wojciech Polak as their delegate for the protection of children and youth, and the creation of the St. Joseph Foundation supporting abuse survivors. Gądecki also noted that the Church had established the role of a “guardian” for accused and convicted clergy. “We also recognize that clergy accused of sexual abuse -- also when convicted -- fall into a loneliness that creates a frustration that is dangerous to the accused or convicted priest, as well as to his potential victims,” he explained. “That is why we have created the role of the guardian of accused or convicted clergy to supervise these individuals, to require them to comply with all restrictions imposed, and to support them in moments of depression or despair. ” He explained that lay people had created an organization called Wounded in the Church providing a hotline for victims and