Sex abuse prevention to feature at Vatican's family meeting

VATICAN CITY – The Vatican's upcoming conference on families in Ireland will feature a seminar on child protection, after the church's sex abuse scandal devastated the credibility of the Catholic Church in the country.

Officials said Thursday that Pope Francis' top adviser on protecting children from pedophiles, Cardinal Sean O'Malley, would lead the seminar and that abuse survivors would participate. Cardinal Kevin Farrell, head of the Vatican's laity and family office, told a briefing that details would be announced later this month.

Francis is expected to travel to Dublin to attend the final days of the Aug. 22-26 World Meeting of Families. The abuse scandal is expected to be a running theme, given the scale of priestly abuse and cover-up in the country and Francis' own questionable record on holding negligent bishops accountable.