Individuals who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
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.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "tender" about their own story and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and continuing to build that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
