Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated
The organization is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has taken on this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the organization, which includes survivors and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and seemed "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered materials that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, they voiced 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 continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
