Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," they stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled materials that they will present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After 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 continuing to build that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey stated.
Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
