Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has inherited this longstanding issue that has haunted the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a priest who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Seven members of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the leader was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, they expressed hope 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 move in the right direction," they stated.
They concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
