People who endured abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Strict Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they stated.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They added the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and seemed "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is hoping that revisions to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and compiled documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, they expressed optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," they commented.
They concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
