People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope after their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who confesses 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 world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the role in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey added the Pope was "compassionate" about their own experience and seemed "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, they expressed hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a move in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
