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Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.

Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.

Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated

The organization is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the US.

The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.

"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," Hickey stated.

Legacy Challenge

The current pontiff, who assumed the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.

Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic summit on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Deeply Felt Connection

For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed 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 aim to work with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we want to end clergy abuse."

Significant Meeting

Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.

The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.

The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.

Hickey added the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal story and seemed "very humble, funny, and approachable."

"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."

Church Regulations Reforms

The organization is hoping that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally.

They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.

"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.

Accountability Highlighted

A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."

The document also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."

Moving Forward

The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."

After the encounter, they expressed hope for future change.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.

Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he valued that."