Individuals who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope after their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Seven members of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
Hickey noted the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they remarked.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed 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."
After the meeting, they expressed hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a connection and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
