People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated
The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Link
For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared 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 want to collaborate with him," they stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Seven members of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty 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 "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, they expressed hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."
