People who experienced abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.
Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who took the position in spring, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.
Personal Connection
For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.
"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.
They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they remarked.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for future change.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a move in the correct path," they stated.
They added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
