Caritas NZ has written to Caritas Internationalis expressing its deep concerns and asking how this was able to happen.

"We have sought reassurance that victims are receiving the support they need and that they are taking all appropriate measures to ensure that a situation like this cannot occur again," Caritas NZ says in a statement.

The Vatican's Caritas Internationalis charity says it learned in 2017 of paedophilia concerns involving its Central African Republic director, but left it for his superiors to investigate and he remained in place and in ministry until this year.

Caritas NZ says all member organisations of the international Caritas Confederation are independently managed from within their own countries.

As part of the Confederation, each member is expected to adhere to a Caritas Code of Ethics, Code of Conduct and Children and Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy.

Caritas International encourages anyone with a child protection concern to report to the local police, Caritas NZ says.

Earlier this week CNN revealed the scandal concerning Delft; reporting that the Belgian Salesian priest was appointed to lead the charity in the poverty-stricken country despite a 2012 criminal conviction in Belgium for child sexual abuse and possession of child pornography.

Two new alleged victims in the Central African Republic have been identified since he was posted there.

Former secretary-general of Caritas International (2011-2019) said he did not know of the conviction until this year.

He admits that in 2017 he had been informed by a therapist that Delft should not be in contact with children.

"I informed Caritas CAR about the therapist's letter and asked them to ensure that the issue was followed up with his order," Roy said in a statement. "I was told that the issue had been resolved."

New safeguarding policies were approved in 2018 at Caritas Internationalis, including the creation of a complaints committee and the appointment of Azzopardi as a safeguarding officer this year.

Azzopardi said a canonical investigation has been launched against Delft, as well as a criminal investigation.

International reaction has been swift as the UN suspended work with Catholic charity in the Central African Republic.

Sources

• CNN
• BBC
• AP News
• Supplied

Fr Tom Uzhunnalil was freed on Tuesday. He is staying with a Salesian community in Rome for a few days before going home to India.

He met Pope Francis on Thursday morning.

At the meeting Francis embraced and encouraged him, assuring him he would continue to pray for him as he had done during his captivity.

Tom thanked Francis, saying he had "prayed every day for him, offering his own suffering for his mission and for the good of the Church."

In discussions about his ordeal, Tom said although he was not able to celebrate the Eucharist, every day, he repeated all the words of the celebration in his heart.

The L'Osservatore Romano report of the meeting said the Pope was "visibly moved, and blessed him."

Another report said: "The Holy See fervently thanks all those who worked for his release, and especially His Majesty the Sultan of Oman and the competent authorities of the Sultanate".

Tom has promised to continue to pray for all who had supported him spiritually and says he remembers in particular the four sisters of the Missionaries of Charity and the twelve people killed at the time of his abduction.

Source

• National Catholic Register
• Zenit
• Zenit
• CBN
• Image: The New Indian Express

Catherine said Mosese was concerned that many students were missing out on an education due to poor transport options and he had began a fundraising project to acquire a school bus. "He was sitting around the table having fish and chips in April and thought of the idea to walk around the island, and get some money for a bus," Catherine said.

"He said, 'would you help me?' "It was funny because when we had our formation, we were told that we would go do unexpected things. It's so true."

The trip took seven days, and raised $135,000.00, which was short of their goal of $200,000. "A lot came from within Samoa - local businesses, family, and even when we were walking around people would give us money," Catherine said. Catherine, a primary school teacher from Brisbane, has been volunteering for the Salesians on the island of Savai'i.

Source

• Catholic Leader
• Image: Don Bosco Samoa

The proposed route of the Israeli wall will also affect the Salesian order's Cremisan monastery and winery, which will be on the Israel side of the wall.

The Salesian sisters who educate about 450 West Bank children fear their pupils will no longer be able to come to school, and the West Bank labourers who work in the winery's vineyards and maintain the Salesian buildings fear they will lose their jobs.

Not only will the workers be on the other side of the wall and need permits to travel to the winery, but the wall will also separate the monastery from grapes supplied from other religious communities on the West Bank.

"Proceeding with this plan will cut families off from agricultural and recreational lands, other family members, water sources, and schools — including depriving Christian Palestinian youth of fellowship with their peers," said Bishop Richard Pates, chair of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' committee on international justice and peace.

"The Cremisan Valley situation is a microcosm of a protracted pattern that has serious implications for the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict," Bishop Pates said in a letter to recently-retired US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

"As the wall moves and constricts more and more communities in the West Bank, the possibility of a future resolution becomes less likely.

"Moving the wall and disassociating Palestinian families from their lands and livelihoods will incite more resentment against the state of Israel among residents of the West Bank, not less, increasing the frustrations that can lead to violence."

In addition to its range of table wines, the Cremisan winery makes altar wine that is used in many of the shrines of the Holy Land — and is also exported to churches in Britain.

Sources:

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

AsiaNews

Catholics Confront Global Poverty

Catholic Herald

Image: CNEWA

Unlike the Don Bosco Technical Center in Apia, the school teaches trades and high school subjects in Year 9 and Year 10. The school also educates both males and females. "There are plans to include a Year 11, 12 and 13 in the next few years so we can be called a College," says Principal Father Mosese Vitolio Tui. The students of the vocational center can study in Savaii and continue at Don Bosco in Apia after two years.

Don Bosco in Savai'i was an initiative by the Archbishop Alapati Mataeliga because there is no Catholic college in Savaii following the closure of Logoipulotu College and Ulimasao College's transformation into a technical center.

The school was opened by the Archbishop who said in his sermon that "The idea of setting up Don Bosco here at Salelologa is to keep students in their homes while attending school. When they leave home to go to school in Apia, they are exposed to all sorts of problems."

Source

• Savali
• Samoa Observer
• Image: Donbosco.asn.au

Over the weekend, Spronck, known as the Delegate, said that sexual relationships between children and adults were not always damaging.

"Formally I always say that everyone must obey the law. But these relationships do not necessarily have to be damaging." Nieuws quoted Spronck as saying.

Spronck was commenting on another Salesian priest's committee membership in "Martijn", a Dutch pro-pedophilia group.

RTL quoted Spronck, Fr Van B.'s superior — as saying he was aware of repeated transgressions in Van B.'s past. However he didn't try to stop him from moving through three dioceses and six parishes in the Netherlands, often leaving under a cloud of suspicion, because he believed in the priest's promises to reform.

"Herman Spronck is no longer the delegate from the Salesian delegation in the Netherlands," his superior Rev. Jos Claes, leader of the Salesians in Belgium and the Netherlands, told RTL. "We fully distance ourselves from the words we find in your interview with Herman Spronck."

Fr Van B "can longer perform any pastoral duties as of today," he added.

The Salesian priest, simply known as Fr Van B, was a committee member of the "Martijn" association and also has two convictions for exposing himself to children. Although suspended from ministry, he worked as a "volunteer" helping prepare children for the first Holy Communion.

An independent commission investigating abuse cases dating back to 1945 has found that the Netherlands ranks worst behind only Ireland in a scandal that has rocked the Catholic Church in Europe and the United States.

Sources

• DutchNews.nl
• Radio Netherlands
• Reuters
• Houston Chronicle
• Sun Sentinal

Widely reviled, but not outlawed, the "Martijn" association advocates the acceptance of pedophilia and the legalisation of sexual relationships between adults and children.

According to RTL Nieuws, which broke the story, the priest, referred to as Father Van B, served on the Martijn board from 2008 - 2010, and is of the view that the relationships promoted by Martijn are not harmful.

Spronck distanced the Order from Father Van B's "personal initiative".

"Membership in such organisations does not fit with the ethos of the Salesian order."

However RTL Nieuws quoted Spronck as saying "formally I always say that everyone must obey the law. But these relationships do not necessarily have to be damaging."

Neither Spronck nor the Salesian order could be reached for comment. According to its website, the Dutch arm of the Salesians has 14 employees and 400 volunteers and aims to help poor children.

The Dutch Catholic Church is also investigating claims that Father Van B had two convictions for exposing himself to children.

Despite being suspended from ministry, Van B was still able to work as a volunteer for various church organisations, including helping children prepare for first holy communion.

Church spokesman Pieter Kohnen labelled the case as "unbelievable".

Sources

• Wikipedia
• Dutch News
• Newser
• Times of India
• Mail Online
• Washington Post