Pope highlighted anti-pedophilia summit – ElSol.com.ar – Diario de Mendoza, Argentina

Pope Francis on Sunday recalled the historic meeting on pedophilia that will be held from 21 to 24 February at the Vatican and said his organization was an "act of strong pastoral responsibility facing an urgent challenge".

"From Thursday to Sunday will be held at the Vatican a meeting of presidents of all episcopal conferences on the theme of the protection of minors in the Catholic Church," recalled Francisco from the window of the apostolic palace and after the prayer of the # 39; Angelus.

"I invite you to pray for this event that I wished (to call) as an act of strong pastoral responsibility facing an urgent challenge of our time," he added.

Next week, an unprecedented summit on "The Protection of Minors in the Church" will meet at the Vatican, bringing together presidents of episcopal conferences from about 130 countries, the superiors general of congregations and groups of victims .

He will insist on taking responsibility, to the extent that there are effective methods of handling complaints and in particular transparency, as explained this week by one of the members of the organizing committee. , Hans Zollner.

The Vatican announced yesterday the expulsion of the priesthood from the ex-cardinal and emeritus archbishop of Washington Theodore McCarrick, a final decision that was taken on the eve of this meeting on pedophilia.

McCarrick (New York, 1930) was considered by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith guilty of abuse of minors and adults with aggravation of abuse of power and for this reason, the punishment of Reduction to the secular state was imposed envisaged in canon law.

McCarrick becomes the highest Catholic figure to receive a conviction of this kind in recent times.