Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they expressed optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he valued that."
