People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Strict Approach Advocated
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 already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled 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 "very understanding" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal story and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," they remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," they commented.
They added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
