Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," they noted.
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 failure to act."
The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they told the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they expressed hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a move in the correct path," they stated.
Hickey concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
