Mar 29, 2014

Find out 'who is who' in the Vatican's Commission for the Protection of Minors


March 24, 2014

The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors is starting to take shape.  The Vatican has announced the names of its governing body, which includes priests, theologians, psychiatrists, lawyers and a sex abuse victim. 

Among the members is Marie Collins. She is a native of Ireland, and she helped the Archdiocese of Dublin in setting up its Child Protection Services. Her presence in the commission will be key, since she herself was abused by a priest as a minor. 


Professor Sheila Hollins is from the UK. She is a psychiatrist who specializes in mental health. 

Dr. Catherine Bonnet, is from France and her area of expertise is child psychology. 

The Archbishop of Boston, Sean O'Malley, is the only cardinal in the group. He announced the creation of the commission back in December after the Pope held a meeting with him and other members of the G8's advisory group. 

Prof. Claudio Papale is a civil lawyer and also a professor at the Pontifical Urbaniana University. As an expert in canon law he also serves in the disciplinary department of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. 

Poland's former prime minister, Hanna Suchocka is also in the commission. She is an expert in Constitutional Law and is a professor at the University of Poznan. 

Fr. Humberto Miguel YaƱez is from Argentina. He is a theology professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University. He has helped organize a conference on the prevention of sex abuse

Fr. Hans Zollner, is from Germany. He is a licensed psychologist and psychotherapist. He is based in Rome and serves as the chair of the Steering Committee of the Center for Child Protection.

The Commission was announced back in December 2013. The group's first assignment will be to establish the task and competencies of the Commission. According to the Vatican's press office, more members will be added in the future.