People who endured abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism after their first encounter 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 addressing the problem.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged 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 pushback," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They added the leader was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted experts and compiled documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they voiced hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
