Individuals who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism following their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they stated.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
They noted the leader was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted experts and gathered documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials 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 senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey voiced optimism for future change.
"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 build that bond is a step in the correct path," they commented.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."
