People who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Strict Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist revealed they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
They added the leader was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted experts and compiled documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, they expressed optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a move in the correct path," they stated.
They concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
