People who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Seven members of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
They added the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal story and seemed "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled materials that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," they stated.
Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
