Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American activist revealed they were abused by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They noted the Pope was "tender" about their personal story and seemed "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"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 genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered materials that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they told 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 expressed hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," they stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
