People who endured abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the issue.
Worldwide Strict Policy Advocated
The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.
The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to Hickey.
"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.
Inherited Challenge
The current pontiff, who assumed the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.
Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Link
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American activist shared they were abused by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.
"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."
Historic Meeting
Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.
The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.
Hickey noted the Pope was "tender" about their own story and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."
Canon Law Changes
The group is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they noted.
Accountability Emphasized
A recently released church-ordered document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."
The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."
Path Ahead
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."
After the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for progress.
"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.
They concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."
