People who experienced abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," they stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Seven members of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They added the leader was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told 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."
After the encounter, Hickey expressed hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
