People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The North American activist revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a step in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They added that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
