People who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Global Strict Policy Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist revealed they were abused by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They added the leader was "tender" about their personal experience and seemed "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is hoping that changes to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for progress.
"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 connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
