People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism after their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic summit on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard 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 native youth in Canada.
They added the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they expressed optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he valued that."
