People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "modest, humorous, 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," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they informed the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, they voiced 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 strengthen that relationship is a step in the correct path," they stated.
They added that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
