People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the position in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "We have the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Seven members of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted experts and compiled documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a connection and continuing to build that bond is a move in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he valued that."
