People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Seven members of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
They noted the leader was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a move in the right direction," they stated.
They concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
