People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to meet with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Strict Approach Advocated
The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.
Personal Link
For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.
"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.
The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.
Hickey added the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."
Church Regulations Reforms
The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.
They have consulted experts and compiled materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.
"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they remarked.
Accountability Highlighted
A recent Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey shared they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
Following the meeting, they voiced hope for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
