People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following 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 early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist shared they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey voiced optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
