VATICAN CITY
Catholic News Service
By Carol Glatz
Catholic News Service
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — A new papal commission for protecting minors from sexual abuse was meeting for the first time to discuss its mandate and expand input from more countries.
Pope Francis, who established the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors in December, was to “greet” the commission members at some point during its May 1-3 deliberations, the Vatican spokesman said April 30.
The commission’s meetings were being held at the Domus Sanctae Marthae, where the pope lives.
The commission, led by U.S. Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley of Boston, was “expected to reflect on the nature and aims of the commission” as well as discuss ways to include additional representatives and input from other parts of the world, said the spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi.
Cardinal O’Malley, who is also one of eight members of the Council of Cardinals advising Pope Francis on the reform of the Roman Curia and governance of the church, told reporters in December that the commission would take a pastoral approach to helping victims and preventing abuse.
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