People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
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 priest who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Seven members of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from more than 30 countries, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They added the Pope was "tender" about their personal story and seemed "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions 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 hoping that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
