Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal story and seemed "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they voiced optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a connection and continuing to build that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
