Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the organization, which includes victims and supporters from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
Hickey noted the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is hoping that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they told the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, they voiced hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
