Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took 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 institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully 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 eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, they expressed hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a move in the correct path," they commented.
They concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
