People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they stated.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to work with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Seven members of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they told the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they expressed hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
