Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were abused by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven members of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was described as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
They noted the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they expressed optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.
Hickey added that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
