Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Seven representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned report highlighted 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 noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they expressed hope for progress.
"We understand 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 move in the right direction," they commented.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
