People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were abused by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pope 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 the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is hoping that changes to church regulations will enable the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they voiced hope 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 right direction," they stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he appreciated that."
