People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, 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 woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
They added the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "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 felt like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted experts and gathered materials that they will present to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," they remarked.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they expressed optimism for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."