People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Strict Policy Advocated
The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who took the position in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal story and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they expressed optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a connection and continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
They added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."
