People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Strict Approach Pushed
The organization is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American activist revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
They added the leader was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and compiled documents that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they voiced optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
