Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The organization is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Issue
The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has taken on this persistent issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
They added the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and seemed "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they told the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, they expressed optimism for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
Hickey added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
