People who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
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 documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they told 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 meeting, Hickey voiced optimism for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," they stated.
Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."
