People who endured abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and seemed "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."
