Marie Collins

Commentary by Susan Brinkmann, OCDS

Although some members of the the press are intimating that Francis did so for political reasons, the four women chosen by Pope Francis to be part of a new commission on clerical sexual abuse are all highly qualified and more than capable of serving in these positions.

The Boston Globe is reporting that Francis, who it describes as a “brilliant Jesuit politician” who “may actually rival Juan and Evita Peron for the best set of political instincts the country ever produced” announced five new lay members of the commission charged with fighting clerical sexual abuse, of which four are women. The committee now totals eight people, four men and four women.

Hanna Suchocka

Among those chosen is an Irish abuse survivor and victims’ rights advocate named Marie Collins. Abused by a priest while growing up in Ireland, she has devoted her life to campaigning for a better understanding of the effects of sexual abuse on children, particularly the taking of abusive images, she is a founding member of the Irish support group, “Aware” and assisted the  Archdiocese of Dublin in setting up their Child Protection Service.

Hanna Suchocka was also tapped to serve on the committee. She served as Poland’s Prime Minister between 1992 and 1993 as well as serving as the country’s ambassador to the Vatican. A specialist in Constitutional Law, she is also a member of the Council on Women World Leaders and the Pontifical Council of Social Sciences.

Catherine Bonnet, a well-known French child psychiatrist, will now occupy a seat on the committee. Dr. Bonnet is considered an expert on the trauma experienced by children who have been abused and exploited.

Dr. Catherine Bonnet

Also chosen was Baroness Sheila Hollins, president of the British Medical Association is Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry of Disability at St George’s University of London, and prior to her retirement was Chair of the Division of Mental Health for 3 years. She holds an honorary Chair in the Department of Theology and Religion, University of Durham. She was President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists for three years and was appointed an Independent member of the House of Lords in 2010.

It’s obvious from the above descriptions that these women were chose because they were qualified, not because the pope is trying to play feminist politics.

While the Globe admitted these women were impressive picks, it still claimed politics were involved.

Baroness Sheila Hollins

“Clearly, these women aren’t window-dressing. They’re accomplished advocates and experts, with deep experience of getting things done both in secular circles and in the church. Francis presumably tapped them because of their personal qualifications, but he can’t be blind to the fact that this also amounts to a down payment on his pledge to boost women’s roles.”

Or maybe he just tapped them because they were among the best people in the world for this job. After all, the new commission, which includes Boston’s Cardinal Sean O’Malley, will be charged with taking criminal action against offenders, educating people about the harm of child exploitation, developing ways to screen better priests and define the civil and clerical duties within the Church.  These are serious responsibilities that go far beyond the scope of “token” appointments.

The Pope’s choices prove what Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi said in a statement about the new commission, that Francis “has made clear that the church must hold the protection of minors amongst her highest priorities.”

And he has chosen the best people to do that job. Period.

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