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

Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the problem.

Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated

The organization is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.

The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.

"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.

Legacy Challenge

The current pontiff, who assumed the position in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for many years.

Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Deeply Felt Connection

For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.

"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."

Historic Encounter

Seven representatives of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.

The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.

The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.

They added the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."

"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Changes

The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.

They have spoken with experts and gathered materials that they plan to present to Pope Leo.

"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they noted.

Responsibility Emphasized

A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

The document also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."

Path Ahead

Hickey shared they informed the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."

Following the meeting, they voiced hope for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated.

Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."