Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the leader was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled materials that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they informed 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 meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
