Individuals who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the organization, which includes survivors and advocates from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they voiced hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
