Individuals who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and seemed "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted specialists and compiled materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After 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 persisting to build that relationship is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
