People who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Strict Approach Pushed
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
They added the leader was "tender" about their own story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted experts and compiled documents that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a connection and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
