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People who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.

The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the issue.

Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated

The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States.

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

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

Inherited Issue

The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.

Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.

Deeply Felt Connection

For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches.

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."

Significant Meeting

Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.

The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.

The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.

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

"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."

Church Regulations Reforms

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

They have consulted experts and gathered materials that they plan to submit to the pontiff.

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

Responsibility Emphasized

A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."

The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."

Moving Forward

Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."

Following the meeting, Hickey voiced optimism for future change.

"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the right direction," they stated.

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