People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated
The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they stated.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has haunted the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were abused by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which represents 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 religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They noted the leader was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, 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," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted experts and compiled documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," they noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and continuing to build that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
They added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
