Individuals who experienced abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy 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 abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "tender" about their personal story and seemed "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted experts and compiled materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the Pope at the start 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 progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," they commented.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
