People who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they stated.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who took the position in May, has taken on this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Seven representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered materials that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the right direction," they stated.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
