Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the organization, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and continuing to build that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
