People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Policy Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they stated.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned 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.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following 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 persisting to build that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
