Poland’s Catholic bishops work with men’s religious orders to strengthen child protection system

“It will enable the Church to act in solidarity for the benefit of the wronged and the protection of minors.”

At the gathering, bishops were presented with a report, titled “Protection of minors and assistance to victims of sexual abuse in the Church in Poland,” reviewing the Church’s actions in 2020.

In its first year of operation, the St. Joseph Foundation allocated around $187,000 to projects, including financing individual therapies for 13 people from nine dioceses. It also supported the activities of the Child Protection Center, which worked on a preventive program for people with disabilities, a prevention system in Catholic schools, and an e-learning program for youth leaders.

At the day-long meeting, the bishops also discussed catechesis in schools, family life, the role of lay people, and a document on the formation of priests in Poland.

The bishops adopted the amendments introduced in the general decree “The Way of Formation of Priests in Poland” (Ratio institutionis sacerdotalis pro Polonia), which sets out new rules for priestly formation in Poland. The decree will come into force subject to Vatican approval.

They also reflected on the Year “Amoris Laetitia Family,” which begins on March 19 and marks the fifth anniversary of the publication of Pope Francis’ 2016 exhortation on the family.

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At the beginning of their meeting, the bishops wrote to Pope Francis in honor of the eighth anniversary of his election on March 13, thanking him “for the many and precious fruits of his pontificate, restoring hope to the Church and to the world.”