Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they told the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, they expressed optimism for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a connection and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
