Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple representatives of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they told the pontiff at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, they voiced hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," they stated.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."
