Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope after their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Worldwide Strict Approach Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, 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 inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. 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," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we want to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they told the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
