People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The group is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist revealed they were abused by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
