People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document 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 document also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a move in the correct path," they stated.
They concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he appreciated that."
