Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted experts and gathered documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they told the pontiff at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
