People who endured abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope following their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Global 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 found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has taken on this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which represents victims and supporters from more than 30 nations, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted experts and compiled documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a connection and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
