People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
They added the leader was "tender" about their own story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, they voiced hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated.
Hickey added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he valued that."
