People who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach 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 Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their own story and seemed "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they 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 canon law will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled materials that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," they remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
