People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope following their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for progress.
"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 continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," they stated.
Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
