People who experienced abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal story and seemed "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they told the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey voiced 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 establishing a connection and persisting to build that bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."
