People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has inherited this longstanding issue that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, 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 abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they expressed hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
