People who experienced abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Global Strict Policy Advocated
The organization is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were abused by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
They added the Pope was "tender" about their own story and appeared "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they voiced optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a connection and persisting to build that relationship is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.
They concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."
