People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Strict Policy Advocated
The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," they stated.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who took the position in spring, 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 child abuse within the institution and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate 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," they stated. "We have the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," they noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," they stated.
Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
