Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their first meeting 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 soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Strict Policy Pushed
The group is advocating 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 been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Seven members of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted experts and gathered documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, they voiced optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
