Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The organization is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach 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 the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey added the leader was "tender" about their own story and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and compiled documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "necessity 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 victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey stated.
They added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."
