People who endured sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, 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 issue.
Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed
The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.
The Pontiff recognized 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.
Legacy Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."
Historic Encounter
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
They added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, funny, and approachable."
"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will enable the implementation of the strict approach globally.
They have spoken with experts and gathered materials that they will present to the pontiff.
"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Accountability Highlighted
A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."
Path Ahead
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a connection and persisting to build that bond is a step in the right direction," they stated.
Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
