Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Global Strict Policy Advocated
The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and seemed "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled materials that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
