People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, 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 Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
Hickey noted the leader was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."
