People who endured abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Strict Policy Advocated
The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," they remarked.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in spring, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They added the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors 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, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, they expressed hope for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a connection and persisting to build that bond is a step in the correct path," they commented.
Hickey added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the story ends - he appreciated that."
