On September 20th, 2022 the Jesuit European Committee for Primary and Secondary Education (JECSE) and Zentrum für Ignatianische Pädagogik (ZIP) organized another important event in the joint Safeguarding program. This time we met online with Dr. Peter Hundertmark to talk about the important issue of spiritual abuse.

Led in French language the seminar was a great chance for teachers from our European network to discuss another important aspect of child protection issue. During the webinar, Dr. Peter Hundertmark led us in reflecting on such questions as: What are we talking about when we speak of spiritual abuse? How can it be distinguished from other forms of abuse of power? What is the connection to sexual abuse? Who is particularly at risk? How can we prevent it? What rules should be observed in conversations with those affected? What is important when dealing with possible perpetrators? What possibilities are there for intervention? What about the responsibility of dioceses and congregations, the dicasteries of the Vatican?

Presentations interspersed with practical exercises, joint reflection on case descriptions, and lively discussion made it a very fruitful time.

We are grateful to Dr. Peter Hundertmark for this important meeting, sharing her knowledge and experience of the topic with us.

We will soon continue our journey with the theme of protection of minors, details of further events can be found on our websites: www.jecse.org, https://zip-ignatianisch.org