People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this longstanding issue that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American activist revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened 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 Indigenous children in Canada.
They added the Pope was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted experts and compiled documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they told the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, they voiced hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a connection and continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
