Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in spring, has taken on this persistent issue that has haunted the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an historic summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel 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 held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed 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 encounter, they voiced hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."
