People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism after their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who took the position in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which represents victims and supporters from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, lasted 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 woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he valued that."
