Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has taken on this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted experts and gathered materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for future change.
"We understand 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 correct path," Hickey stated.
Hickey concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the story ends - he appreciated that."
