🔗 Share this article

Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.

Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the problem.

Worldwide Strict Policy Advocated

The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.

The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.

"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.

Legacy Issue

The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Church for decades.

Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.

Deeply Felt Connection

For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.

"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."

Significant Encounter

Seven members of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.

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

The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.

Hickey noted the leader was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."

"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."

Church Regulations Changes

The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.

They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they will present to Pope Leo.

"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.

Responsibility Highlighted

A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

The report also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."

Moving Forward

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

Following the encounter, they voiced hope for future change.

"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a move in the right direction," they commented.

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