Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the organization, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was described as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
