Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who took the position in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Seven members of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted 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 female survivor abused at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "very humble, humorous, 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 sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials 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 held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, they voiced optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a step in the correct path," they commented.
Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he valued that."
