People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism after their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they stated.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate revealed they were abused by a priest who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and gathered materials that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction 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 participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a connection and continuing to build that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They added that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."
