People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism following their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Worldwide Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Seven members of the organization, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, 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 abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and seemed "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"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 genuine, practical, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted specialists and gathered materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, they expressed optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the right direction," they stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
