People who endured abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision 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 strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The North American activist shared they were abused by a priest who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted experts and gathered documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, they expressed optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."
