People who experienced abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is proven of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They noted the leader was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they told the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they voiced hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a connection and persisting to build that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
