People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, 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 issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Seven members of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from more than 30 countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They added the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they expressed hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
