Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was described as "very understanding" 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 own story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a risk 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 be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
