Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, 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 woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and gathered materials that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they expressed optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a connection and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
