People who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Strict Policy Advocated
The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted specialists and compiled materials that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he valued that."
