People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They added the Pope was "tender" about their own story and seemed "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted specialists and gathered materials that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they expressed hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
They 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 valued that."
