Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Seven members of the organization, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
They added the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal story and appeared "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 stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
