People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Approach Advocated
The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between various churches.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They added the Pope was "tender" about their personal story and seemed "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in reviewing it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
The representative shared they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk 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 conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a move in the correct path," they commented.
Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."
