People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization 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 policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Seven representatives of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey 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 persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he appreciated that."
