People who experienced abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global 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 abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Issue
The current pontiff, who took the role in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred 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 want to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.
Hickey noted the leader was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and compiled materials that they will submit to Pope Leo.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they told the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they expressed hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They added that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
