People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads 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 issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated
The organization is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has taken on this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted experts and gathered materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the correct path," they stated.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."