People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Approach Advocated
The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American activist revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is hoping that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," they noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
They added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he valued that."
