People who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who took the position in May, has inherited this longstanding issue that has haunted the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
They added the leader was "tender" about their own story and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a connection and continuing to build that bond is a step 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."
