Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope after their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Historic Encounter
Seven members of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal story and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted experts and compiled materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After 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 connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.
Hickey added that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
