People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Seven representatives of the coalition, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They noted the leader was "tender" about their own story and seemed "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," they commented.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."
