Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which represents victims and supporters from more than 30 countries, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
They added the leader was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they told the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, they voiced optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
