Approaching the subjects of child safeguarding and children through a theological
lens, the author shows the devastating scale, impact, and ramifications of the Catholic
Church’s failures in safeguarding children, which become apparent in the current
child abuse scandals, and how this crisis creates an opportunity to bring the child
(back) into the church’s focus. This leads to a focus on core reasons or factors for
the scandals and how these are linked to a lack of attention given to children in the
scientific thought of the church. There exists a lacuna in systematic theology when it
comes to children, but one can find promising theological grounds for exploring and
promoting a more child-centric theology and church culture.