People who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope after their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Global Strict Approach Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the organization, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The organization is hoping that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted experts and gathered materials that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they voiced hope for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
