People who endured abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The group is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to work with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and advocates from more than 30 countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
They added the leader was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he valued that."
