Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment 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 found guilty of abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were abused by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is hoping that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted experts and compiled documents that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they expressed hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and continuing to build that bond is a move in the correct path," they commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
