People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Strict Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an historic summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Seven members of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted specialists and gathered materials that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a move in the right direction," they commented.
They concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."