People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is hoping that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted experts and compiled materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they expressed hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a step in the correct path," they commented.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."
