Irish advisor to Pope on child protection critical of pontiff over smacking remarks

VATICAN CITY
RTE News

Marie Collins, the Irish victim of sexual abuse who advises Pope Francis on child protection, has joined a chorus of dissent following the pontiff’s endorsement of what he called “dignified” corporal punishment in the home.

However, the Vatican spokesman has issued a statement denying that the Pope encourages parents to hit their children.

Ms Collins has sharply criticised the Catholic Church here over its cover-up of her abuse by a priest while she was a patient in Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital in Crumlin.

She is in the Vatican for a meeting of the Commission for the Protection of Minors, to which Pope Francis appointed her shortly after his election in 2013.

Speaking at a news conference she disagreed with the Pope’s remarks at a public audience on Wednesday, praising a father he had met for respecting his children’s dignity by spanking them without striking them in the face.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.