People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Policy Advocated
The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits 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 globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
They added the Pope was "tender" about their own story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation 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 conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey added that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he valued that."
