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Pope Francis Announces New Measures against Abuses

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Pope Francis announced here new measures to prevent and address the sexual abuse of minors and vulnerable people within the Catholic Church this Thursday.
 
'Vos estis lux mundi' (You are the light of the world) is the name of the Apostolic Letter in the form of a Motu proprio (own initiative) signed by the Supreme Pontiff, which covers all acts committed with violence, threats or abuse of authority.
 
The measures approved by Francis 'are the fruit of reflections and collaborations during and after the meeting of the presidents of the Episcopal Conferences and of the Supreme Moderators of the principal religious Institutes, held in February,' says the note.
 
It adds that the Letter contains innovations aimed at promoting better coordination between the dioceses and the Holy See and, in particular, all dioceses must establish, within a period of one year, stable systems accessible to the public to denounce cases of sexual abuse and their possible concealment.
 
In addition, it obliges all clerics, religious men and women, to denounce before the competent ecclesiastical authorities the abuses they know of and the cases denounced will be immediately verified and evaluated in accordance with what is established by canon law.
 
Andrea Tornielli, editorial director of the Vatican Press Room, told the daily La Stampa that this provision does not interfere with the obligation to report cases of abuse to the civil authorities, as established by the legislation in force in each country. / PL