Key Links

Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People

The Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People is a comprehensive set of procedures originally established by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) in June 2002 for addressing allegations of sexual abuse of minors by Catholic clergy. It also includes guidelines for reconciliation, healing, accountability, and prevention of future acts of abuse. Every Catholic diocese/eparchy in the United States is bound by the Charter. The Charter is available on the USCCB’s website.

VIRTUS Online Training for Adults + Background Check

The Charter requires adults who have contact with minors to complete sexual abuse prevention training. The Archeparchy of Philadelphia uses VIRTUS Online’s “Protecting God’s Children” program for adults which is available at www.virtusonline.org. A background check is also submitted through the VIRTUS website. The training and background check are valid for five (5) years.

Directions for Registering with VIRTUS Online

• Go to www.virtusonline.org
• Click "FIRST-TIME REGISTRANT".
• Click "Begin the registration process".
• Select "Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia" from the dropdown.
• The remaining steps should be intuitive.

VIRTUS Training for Children and Youth

The Charter requires minors enrolled in religious education/catechism or parochial schools to receive age-appropriate sexual abuse prevention training. This training is given in person and must be repeated every year. The Archeparchy of Philadelphia uses the “Empowering God’s Children” curriculum from VIRTUS. Parents should
contact their catechist or the Safe Environment Coordinator (smclaughlin@ukrcatholic.org) to receive the “Empowering God’s Children” content.
Parent Opt-out Form for “Empowering God’s Children” Parents have the right to opt out their children from the “Empowering God’s Children” training. In such cases, the Archeparchy asks them to submit the online opt-out form. The Archeparchy will gladly provide the “Empowering God’s Children” content to parents who opt out their children from the training for review at home. Submit the parent opt-out form here.

Parent Opt-out Form for “Empowering God’s Children”

Parents have the right to opt out their children from the “Empowering God’s Children” training. In such cases, the Archeparchy asks them to submit the online opt-out form. The Archeparchy will gladly provide the “Empowering God’s Children” content to parents who opt out their children from the training for review at home. Submit the parent opt-out form here.