Individuals who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Strict Approach Advocated
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, they expressed optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
