Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Policy Advocated
The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, 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 the representative.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the leader was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted specialists and compiled documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
