People who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Seven members of the organization, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," they noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they told the pontiff at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey expressed hope 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 build that relationship is a step in the correct path," they stated.
They added that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."
