People who endured abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Seven representatives of the organization, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table 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 eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted experts and compiled materials that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a connection and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a move in the right direction," they commented.
They concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
