Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Strict Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted experts and gathered documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After 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, coming together and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
