People who endured abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
They added the leader was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted specialists and compiled documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
Hickey added that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
