People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "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," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they will present to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After 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 relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a step in the correct path," Hickey stated.
Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he valued that."
