New statutes for a new Vatican commission aimed at protecting minors underline the Holy See’s commitment to preventing clerical sex abuse of children and vulnerable adults, the commission secretary has said.

In comments to the Register last month, Msgr. Robert Oliver said the statutes, which were approved by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin on April 21 by mandate of Pope Francis, are also important for defining the commission’s mission.

“The statutes are important for giving structure to our work, defining our proper mission and establishing us as an advisory commission which reports directly to the Holy Father,” said Msgr. Oliver, who serves as secretary to the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors.

He added that they also “provide the important elements of our internal structure, including membership, leadership, the plenary assembly, our working groups and office personnel.”

The Pope instituted the commission in March 2014 with the aim of improving norms and procedures for protecting children and vulnerable adults. He also appointed Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston to head it and named 16 other members to the body, comprising a number of experts and abuse survivors Marie Collins and Peter Saunders. The commission met for the first time as a complete entity in February this year.

In his March 2014 chirograph — the official papal document that established the foundation of the commission — Pope Francis noted the many “painful actions” that have caused the entire Catholic Church to undertake a very critical examination of clerical abuse.

The commission, he said, is a response to these actions and marks “the firm beginning for initiatives of many different types, which are intended to repair the damage, to attain justice and to prevent, by all means possible, the recurrence of similar incidents in the future.”

Article 2 of the statutes states the protection of minors is of “paramount importance” and that the purpose of the commission is to “propose initiatives” to the Pope “for the purposes of promoting local responsibility in the particular Churches for the protection of all minors and vulnerable adults.”

The statutes serve as guidelines for the commission for a temporary period. After three years, modifications will be made to them before more permanent guidelines, approved by the Pope, are implemented.

 

‘Professional Approach’

Msgr. Oliver, a priest from the Archdiocese of Boston, pointed out that the commission has been operating in the same way “since we began,” but that the approval of the statutes “makes clear the commitment of the Holy See to the mission that has been entrusted to us.”

He explained that the “working group” structure was chosen because the overall membership of the commission “provides a professional, multidisciplinary and multicultural approach to child protection.”

“In order to prepare proposals in specific areas for the full commission, our working groups will comprise members and experts in a particular field, who will then research a specific topic and develop proposals,” he said. “The first groups were formed for particular areas of interest and regions. They will now suggest specific areas and issues that they wish to research and develop.”

He added that the first, broad areas of interest include “policies for the care of survivors of abuse and their families, guidelines for child protection in episcopal conferences and religious conferences, education and formation for child protection and proper assessment and care for those accused of child abuse.”

Asked how the commission will put its findings into force, he said the proposals will be passed to the Holy Father, “who will decide how each one is to move forward.” He added that, “in many cases,” the commission will work with a local Church concerning implementation. “As the statutes state, our mission is ‘promoting local responsibility in the particular Churches for the protection of all minors and vulnerable adults,’” he said.

He pointed out that “other proposals” may mean working with an episcopal conference or a congregation in the Holy See and that the statutes also indicate that when developing proposals concerning the competence of another ecclesial body, “we will consult promptly the offices responsible for the protection of minors in that area.” That consultation, he explained, “would include a discussion regarding the implementation of a proposal.”

 

Bishops’ Accountability

One of the current tasks of the commission is to draw up recommendations for improving bishops’ accountability concerning abuse cases. Msgr. Oliver said the commission began in February to make “observations and recommendations regarding an initial proposal.” 

The Vatican official added that consultations will be carried out and “shared in a transparent manner with the commission members” before they “decide together what the next steps will be.”