Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who took the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Seven members of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
They added the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey expressed hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
