Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and seemed "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they expressed hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a step in the correct path," they stated.
Hickey concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
