Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
They noted the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and compiled documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey expressed hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a move in the correct path," they commented.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
