People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who took the position in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
They added the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the pontiff 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 voiced optimism for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," they stated.
They concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."
