Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Worldwide Strict Policy Advocated
The organization is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance 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 remarked.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who took the position in May, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted specialists and compiled documents that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity 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 survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they 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 connection and persisting to build that bond is a step in the correct path," they commented.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."
