People who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.
The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.
Worldwide Strict Approach Pushed
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The new Pope, who took the role in May, has taken on this persistent issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in looking at it," Hickey noted.
Responsibility Highlighted
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."
Moving Forward
The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for future change.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," they commented.
Hickey concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."
