People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who took the position in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a priest who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Seven representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "tender" about their own story and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they voiced optimism for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a connection and persisting to build that bond is a step in the correct path," they 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 valued that."
