Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who took the position in spring, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist shared they were abused by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended 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 account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought 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 very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted experts and compiled documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, they expressed optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the correct path," they stated.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
