People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is hoping that changes to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted experts and gathered documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, they expressed hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a move in the right direction," they commented.
They added that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
