People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's decision to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the position in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
They noted the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted experts and gathered documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the narrative ends - he valued that."
