Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Strict Policy Advocated
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The North American activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," they expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Seven representatives of the organization, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty nations, met 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 Hickey.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their own story and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and eager 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 experts and compiled documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey expressed hope for progress.
"We realise 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 bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."
