Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated
The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
They added the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal story and seemed "very humble, 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," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents 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 understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.
Hickey added that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."
