VATICAN CITY
RT
Pope Francis gave parents the go ahead to smack children – if their dignity is preserved. His remarks during his weekly general audience in Rome have provoked social media outcry with many accusing the Argentinian pontiff of supporting violence. …
“It is disappointing that anyone with that sort of influence would make such a comment,” the coordinator of the Global Alliance to End Corporal Punishment of Children, Peter Newell, said.
According to the founder of the National Association for People Abused in Childhood, Peter Saunders, the pope’s remarks were misplaced.
“I think that is a very misguided thing to have said and I’m surprised he said it, although he does come up with some howlers sometimes,” Saunders, who was abused for over five years by two Catholic priests as a child in London, told the Telegraph.
In December, Saunders was appointed by Pope Francis to his new Vatican commission on protecting children from abusive priests.
“It is a most unhelpful remark to have made and I will tell him that,” he added.
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.