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 Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have consulted experts and compiled materials that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they expressed hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
