People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were abused by a priest who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal story and seemed "very humble, humorous, 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," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," they stated.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."
