Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Strict Policy Advocated
The group is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the US.
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 remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey added the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered materials that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a connection and continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," they stated.
Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
