Pastor’s Corner for the Second Sunday of Lent, Year A, by Fr. Bruce Botha SJ
During the month of March Pope Francis asks the church to join with him praying for those who have experienced abuse at the hands of those within the Church. His intention is as follows:
We pray for those who have suffered harm from members of the Church; may they find within the Church herself a concrete response to their pain and suffering.
As a parish community we have established the safeguarding committee and have begun the work of training and screening those who work with children and youth. We are planning further workshops for the broader community. We will also have Fr Russell Pollitt SJ, the safeguarding officer for the Jesuits in South Africa, to give our faith development talk on the 4th Sunday of March.
The prayer ministry team of the parish has put together the following prayer for us to pray during this month. Let us hold in our prayers all of those who have been hurt by members of the Church community and resolve to do better in the future.
Loving and Merciful Father, we pray for all victims of harm and abuse from
members of the church.
We pray that you give the victim-survivors strength and fortitude,
and heal their pain and trauma.
Heavenly Father, as church community we join the Pope asking for your forgiveness, and the forgiveness of the victims as we commit to the journey of removing the scourge of abuse within the church.
We pray for our archdiocesan Professional Conduct Committee and parish Safeguarding committees. We ask that you give them Wisdom, Understanding and Courage to perform the tasks assigned to them to guard and protect the vulnerable in the church from all harm and abuse now and in the future.
We pray for the perpetrators of harm and abuse in their time of darkness, that they too will receive healing and forgiveness from your beloved Son,
who came to this world to save sinners. AMEN
Our Lady of Sorrows intercede for us. Amen