🔗 Share this article

Individuals who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.

The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.

Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed

The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the US.

The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.

"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey stated.

Legacy Issue

The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for decades.

Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws 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 activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between various churches.

"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "We have the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."

Historic Encounter

Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.

The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.

The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.

Hickey noted the leader was "tender" about their personal story and seemed "modest, humorous, and approachable."

"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."

Church Regulations Changes

The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.

They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they will present to the pontiff.

"He appeared interested in reviewing it," they noted.

Responsibility Emphasized

A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."

Moving Forward

The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."

After the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for progress.

"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 connection and persisting to build that bond is a move in the right direction," they commented.

They concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he valued that."