Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Policy Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who prefers 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 later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the organization, which includes victims and supporters from more than 30 nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the Pope was "tender" about their own story and seemed "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a connection and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the correct path," they commented.
They added that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
