Synodality in Safeguarding

Dr. Susan Mulheron
28 January 2026 - Online
12 p.m. - 1 p.m. (Eastern Time - Ottawa, Canada)

For all the fruits that safeguarding protocols and structures have brought in terms of protecting children from sexual abuse in Church environments, it can still be a challenge to find enthusiasm for safeguarding. The protocols can feel onerous to implement, and too legalistic of an approach to ministry to leave any room for the graces of the Holy Spirit to work. Sometimes we even hear people refer to safeguarding as something they merely tolerate as a sort of necessary evil, as if we all have to be punished due to the actions of a few bad actors. Taking a synodal approach to safeguarding can help address this misguided view of safeguarding and its place in the life of the Church going forward. Approaching safeguarding as the work of instilling a culture that protects and advocates the health, wellbeing, and personal dignity of everyone in the Church helps us to teach more effectively about how preventing sexual abuse is a shared responsibility of the ecclesial community, which requires a communal and intentional effort to create safe environments for all persons in all Church spaces. When the entire community understands itself as responsible for the safety of everyone present, prevention of harm is strengthened and the members of the Body of Christ better fulfills their duty of care to the rest of the body. In this webinar we will discuss what synodality in safeguarding looks like, and share our experiences of successes and challenges in this work.

Susan Mulheron holds a licentiate in canon law from the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC and a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome. She has been serving as Chancellor for Canonical Affairs for the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis since 2013. Her areas of canonical expertise include chancery practice, Church governance, and canonical processes and jurisprudence related to delicts against the sixth commandment. Dr. Mulheron is a wife, mother, and advocate for Restorative Justice and other restorative practices to help address various harms experienced in the Church, particularly those arising from sexual abuse and misconduct.

Register for Free (ce webinaire est uniquement en anglais):

https://uottawa-ca.zoom.us/meeting/register/1zZ6GGPxRj2j68AZbQhmQA