People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Strict Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of 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 globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the leader was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted specialists and compiled documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, they voiced hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a connection and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the correct path," they stated.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."
