Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they remarked.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
They noted the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they informed the Pope at the beginning 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 realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and continuing to build that relationship is a step in the correct path," they stated.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he valued that."
