People who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Policy Advocated
The organization is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they told the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey 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 establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
