People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they stated.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has taken on this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The North American activist revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Seven members of the organization, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey 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 relationship and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," they commented.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
