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People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.

The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the problem.

Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated

The group is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the US.

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

"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.

Inherited Issue

The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has taken on this persistent issue that has haunted the Church for decades.

Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.

"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."

Significant Meeting

Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.

The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.

The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.

Hickey noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."

"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."

Church Regulations Reforms

The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.

They have consulted experts and compiled documents that they will present to the pontiff.

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

Accountability Emphasized

A recent church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."

The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."

Moving Forward

The representative shared they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."

Following the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a step in the right direction," they commented.

They concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."