People who endured abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope 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 commitment to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Strict Approach Pushed
The group is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Issue
The current pontiff, who assumed the role in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Significant Encounter
Seven representatives of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own experience and seemed "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is hoping that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they will submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a move in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."
