The Holy See Committee for the Protection of Children and the Polish Bishops’ Conference organized an international conference on the protection of children and vulnerable adults in Warsaw. At the end of the three-day meeting, the participants discussed the future initiatives of the Central and Eastern European churches in the form of a round table. Archbishop Polak, the chief bishop of Poland, presided over the closing mass for this session.
(Vatican News Network)The Warsaw International Conference on the protection of children and vulnerable adults ended on September 22. This is the cooperation between the Central and Eastern European churches, for the sake of the church, and with the society and national authorities, and it is especially necessary to accompany the injured and groups who have encountered violations. The three-day event was organized by the Holy See Committee for the Protection of Children and the Polish Bishops’ Conference. On the morning of the closing day, a round table was held to discuss future plans. The closing mass was presided over by the Archbishop of Poland, Archbishop Wojciech Polak.
Archbishop Pollack’s preaching proceeded from the gospel, reiterating that the painful consequences of injuries to the “innocent” made the entire church anxious. This is a kind of “destroy, collapse, and loss of confidence.” People are deprived of their dignity and collapsed, leaving a mark on the spirit and soul. “Only by facing the truth of these cruel acts can the church find the way and be confident that it will once again be regarded as a safe place to accept those in need.” Archbishop Pollack quoted Pope Francis as saying: “The Lord is with us and desires to make us a humble tool for the victims of violations, so that we can see each other as partners and masters of a common future and learn from each other.”
During this meeting, Father Hans Zollner, Director of the Institute of Anthropology for the Protection of Children at the Pontifical Gregorian University of Rome, talked about the “different conditions of the country” in his speech. The concept reached, namely: “thoughts” that are not conducive to combating violations. “The problem of thinking cannot be changed quickly and simply. It requires the participation of the heart. Courage comes from the heart. It is very encouraging that many lay men and women are determined to devote themselves to this cause, especially in the area of prevention. A lot, but more needs to be done.” Compared with the past, “we now know who to ask for help, where to consult, and we know our neighbors”; however, we should “shift from disseminating information to investing in the process.”
Father Adam Żak, Coordinator of Child Protection Affairs of the Polish Bishops’ Conference and Director of the Center for Child Protection, expressed satisfaction with this meeting because it was a “necessary step”, especially in the work of creating a “network.” However, the priest looked forward to the future and asked: Are we going to take the next step, how to proceed, and can we work together to some extent? In addition, in terms of related discussions and struggles, Father Zach believes that it is necessary to invite the ancient churches in Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan to participate.
In addition, Ms. Ewa Kusz, a psychotherapist, also spoke at the conference. She explained that the conference website will continue to operate so that talents from various countries who have been nurtured in the field of accompanying victims can keep in touch. This is the way to go: “to accompany the injured.” Therefore, it is necessary to understand how to “help them, how to work together, and use the experience of the survivors and those in the recovery phase.” In addition, we must also reflect on “the procedures we have adopted” and what we have done “to ensure that this kind of incident does not repeat itself.”
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