Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who took the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
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 characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," they noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a move in the right direction," they commented.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
