People who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The organization is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own experience and seemed "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they voiced optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a connection and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he appreciated that."
