People who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who admits 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 some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who took the position in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was described as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," they noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they voiced hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a move in the right direction," they stated.
They added that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
