People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to end clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Seven members of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, they expressed hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a connection and persisting to build that bond is a move in the correct path," they commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
