Individuals who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey expressed hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.
Hickey added that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
