People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Strict Approach Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They noted the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, they voiced hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.
Hickey added that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
