People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Strict Policy Advocated
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who took the position in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate 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 work with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they voiced hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and persisting 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 dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
