People who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the position in spring, has taken on this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
They added the leader was "tender" about their own story and appeared "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel 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 facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, they expressed hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the correct path," they stated.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
