People who experienced abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate revealed they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Seven members of the organization, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
They noted the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted 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 very open and eager to collaborate 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 consulted experts and compiled documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
