People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American activist revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Multiple representatives of the organization, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal story and seemed "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they informed the pontiff at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they expressed hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a move in the right direction," they commented.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
