Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who took the position in May, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report highlighted 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 made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the right direction," they stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
