People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
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 pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and compiled materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared 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."
Following the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey stated.
Hickey added that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he appreciated that."
