People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the organization, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they told the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After 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 building a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a move in the right direction," they commented.
They added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he valued that."
