People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The organization is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
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 drive for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled 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 "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted experts and compiled materials that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."
