Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated
The organization is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff 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 pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey added the Pope was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction 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 participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to strengthen that relationship 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 feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
