Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Strict Policy Pushed
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they stated.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was described as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.
Hickey noted the leader was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.
"He appeared interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, they voiced optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a move in the correct path," they commented.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
