Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed
The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest 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 "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they remarked.
Legacy Challenge
The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Personal Connection
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were abused by a priest who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Seven members of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from more than 30 countries, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They added the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Reforms
The group is hoping that changes to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.
Accountability Emphasized
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the encounter, they expressed optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.
They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
