People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty 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 the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
They noted the leader was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they voiced optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a move in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
