People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope after their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Policy Pushed
The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who took the position in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "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 progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he valued that."
