ROME
National Catholic Reporter
Joshua J. McElwee | Mar. 28, 2017
ROME A member of Pope Francis’ commission on clergy sexual abuse says his group has asked the pontiff to create a new Vatican office to train the city-state’s personnel in how to respond to letters from abuse survivors.
Jesuit Fr. Hans Zollner, a member of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, told the Italian Catholic channel TV2000 Monday that Vatican officials need training before they can respond to survivors.
“Many people in the Vatican do not know how to respond because they lack the psychological, theological and juridical background,” said Zollner, who also leads the Pontifical Gregorian University’s Center for Child Protection.
“It takes a complex set of competences and professional abilities,” he said March 27. “We have asked the pope to create an office to train people who can respond, as we must, to people.”
The question of how the Vatican responds to abuse survivors’ letters has been raised this month following Marie Collins March 1 resignation as a member of the pontifical commission.
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.