More than 800 people from 16 countries have begun their training in the course Good treatment, prevention and redress of abuse in pastoral settings coordinated by the Order’s Commission for the Protection of Minors and Vulnerable Adults and directed by Dr. Carmen Montejo MartÃnez and Dr. Carmen Montejo MartÃnez. Fr. Antonio Carrón de la Torreboth members of the Commission.
This course, designed for anyone involved in the pastoral ministries of the Augustinian Recollect Family, aims to deepen the knowledge of human vulnerability and the different types of abuse, as well as to train participants to prevent and adequately address these situations.
To this end, the course program is organized into five themes, including understanding sexual abuse in childhood, non-sexual abuse in the Church (of power, conscience and spiritual abuse), prevention of abuse, accompaniment of victims and survivors, as well as justice and reparation for victims and survivors.
Among the experts who will speak in the online sessions are the coordinator of the Commission for Care and Protection of the Latin American Confederation of Religious (CLAR), Mª Rosaura González Casas; the regional expert for the Americas of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, Daniel Portillo; the General Councilor of the Order, and responsible for ongoing formation, Fr. Javier Monroy and the president of the Asociación Acogida Betania, Mª Teresa Compte. Carmen Montejo and Fr. Antonio Carrón will also participate with exhibitions.
As Carmen Montejo herself has pointed out, This course is an excellent opportunity for people who work and collaborate in the Order’s pastoral environments -parish, educational and social- to approach the problem of abuse in society and in the Church and to acquire resources to be generators of a culture of care, good treatment and protection of children, adolescents and vulnerable adults wherever they are. He added that the reception, interest and involvement in the course activities has been very good, much more than we could have imagined.
The course is being conducted entirely online through the In Imum Cordis Training School platform, with synchronous classes scheduled to fit the participants’ schedule. In addition, interaction is encouraged through online forums to participate in various discussions and ask questions. Homework is assigned at the end of each topic and a tutor is available to answer questions and provide guidance throughout the course.