People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The group 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 policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they stated.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
