People who endured abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is proven of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Seven members of the coalition, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They noted the leader was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims 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 very open and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted experts and gathered documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey expressed hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," they stated.
Hickey added that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
