People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were abused by a priest who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, they expressed hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the right direction," they stated.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
