People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in May, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted specialists and compiled materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the start 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 voiced optimism 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 continuing to build that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the narrative ends - he valued that."
