Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism following 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 engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
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 abused by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
