People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Worldwide Strict Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the role in May, has taken on this persistent issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
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 pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and compiled documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they voiced 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 continuing to build that relationship is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
