The participants of the Joint ELM have now begun a three-day module on safeguarding facilitated by Tina Campbell, who has worked previously with both branches of the Institute on the issue.
SAFEGUARDING DAY 3
Today was the third and final day of an intensive formation on safeguarding with our facilitator Tina Campbell.
Following some time for reflection and collective processing of yesterday’s material, Tina led participants through a series of safeguarding topics: the reality and possible causes of abuse in the Church, explanation of cognitive distortions, the reality of abuse in religious life and in formation, accompaniment of and care for victim survivors of abuse including the creation of care plans, social media and online abuse, and the use of codes of conduct in community life and ministry.
It was a very full day. The day concluded with a final reflection and Eucharistic celebration.
SAFEGUARDING DAY 2
Participants continued with learnings on safeguarding. The day began with some processing of the previous day’s material, followed by prayer.
‘Blessing for the parents of one who has committed crime’ – John O’Donohue
No one else can see beauty
In his darkened life now.
His image has closed
Like a shadow.
When people look at him,
He has become the mirror
Of the damage he has done.
But he is yours,
And you have different eyes
That hold his yesterdays
In pictures no one else remembers.
Waiting for him to be born,
Not knowing who he would be,
The moments of his childhood,
First steps, first words,
Smiles and cries;
And all the big thresholds
Of his journey since…
He is yours in a way
No words could ever tell:
And you can see through
This stranger this deed has made him
And still find the countenance of your son.
Despite all the disappointment and shame,
May you find in your belonging with him
A kind place, where your spirit will find rest.
May new words come alive between you
To build small bridges of understanding.
May that serenity lead you beyond guilt and blame
To find that bright field of the heart
Where he can come to feel your love
Until it heals whatever darkness drove him
And he can see what it is he has done
And seek forgiveness and bring healing;
May this dark door open a path
That brightens constantly with new promise.
Throughout the day participants received input and had time for reflection/integration on safeguarding issues including concerns, allegations and red flags, sexual abuse behaviours, responsibilities of leaders, and review of scenarios and case studies.
The day ended with spiritual conversation and Eucharist.
Safeguarding Day 1
The morning began with a poem-prayer by John O’Donohue:
For A Leader
May you have the grace and wisdom
To act kindly, learning
To distinguish between what is
Personal and what is not.
May you be hospitable to criticism.
May you never put yourself at the center of things.
May you act not from arrogance but out of service.
May you work on yourself,
Building up and refining the ways of your mind.
May those who work for you know
You see and respect them.
May you learn to cultivate the art of presence
In order to engage with those who meet you.
When someone fails or disappoints you,
May the graciousness with which you engage
Be their stairway to renewal and refinement.
May you treasure the gifts of the mind
Through reading and creative thinking
So that you continue as a servant of the frontier
Where the new will draw its enrichment from the old,
And may you never become a functionary.
May you know the wisdom of deep listening,
The healing of wholesome words,
The encouragement of the appreciative gaze,
The decorum of held dignity,
The springtime edge of the bleak question.
May you have a mind that loves frontiers
So that you can evoke the bright fields
That lie beyond the view of the regular eye.
May you have good friends
To mirror your blind spots.
May leadership be for you
A true adventure of growth.
Participants then reflected on where they are in their personal journey of safeguarding. Over the course of the day, input was provided on the topic of safeguarding – definitions, forms of abuse, and the process of grooming. The day concluded with spiritual conversation and Eucharist.
