People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated
The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and seemed "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will enable the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted specialists and compiled documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, they expressed optimism for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," they stated.
They concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
