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Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism after their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.

Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.

Global Strict Policy Advocated

The organization is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.

The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.

"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.

Inherited Challenge

The current pontiff, who took the position in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for decades.

Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.

Personal Link

For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.

"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."

Historic Meeting

Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.

The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.

The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.

They added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and seemed "modest, humorous, and approachable."

"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to work with us."

Canon Law Changes

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

They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they will present to Pope Leo.

"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.

Responsibility Highlighted

A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."

The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."

Path Ahead

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

Following the encounter, they voiced optimism for progress.

"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 build that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.

They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."