We already knew each other well, for we had been meeting online every couple of months for nearly two years, so when we met for the first time face to face in Paris there was little need for introductions. We were the CEP province delegates for safeguarding of minors and vulnerable adults who met in Paris between the 16^th and 18^th October. We were 15 in all: the president and socius of the Conference plus the delegates of twelve European Provinces. Six of the 13 delegates were lay, five women and one man.

We all work in the same field, but in very different social, cultural and legal contexts. Like all similar meetings, these were a very enriching three days: we shared our experience of what succeeds and what we find most difficult, the challenges of formation for the construction of what the Society calls ‘a new culture of safeguarding’. How do you deal with the victims of abuse, what do they seek from us? How do you motivate elderly Jesuits – and those in formation – to engage in this process? So many questions, with or without clear answers, but there is no doubt that the Society in Europe is seriously engaged in the building of a new culture of safeguarding, of offering safe spaces to those who come to us.

A big thanks goes to the organising committee, and to the EOF curia, especially the socius Gregoire Le Bel, for their wonderful hospitality and the lovely boat ride along the Seine.

Paul Pace
Socius EUM