Individuals who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a priest who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled materials that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for progress.
"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 persisting to build that bond is a move in the correct path," they stated.
Hickey added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
