Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Strict Policy Advocated
The organization is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
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 pushback," they remarked.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the position in spring, has taken on this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and advocates from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal story and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism 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 step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
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."
