People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Strict Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Seven members of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The group is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted experts and gathered documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey voiced optimism for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
