People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Strict Approach Advocated
The organization is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the role in May, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were abused by a priest who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They added the leader was "tender" about their own story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they voiced optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
