Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted experts and compiled materials that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a move in the correct path," they stated.
They added that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
