Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
They added the Pope was "tender" about their own story and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they will present to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, they expressed optimism for progress.
"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 bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
