Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy 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 Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we want to end clergy abuse."
Significant Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative shared they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
