People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the correct path," Hickey stated.
Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
