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Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.

Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the issue.

Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated

The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the US.

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

"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they stated.

Legacy Issue

The new Pope, who took the position in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.

Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.

Personal Link

For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."

Significant Encounter

Seven representatives of the coalition, which includes victims and advocates from more than 30 countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.

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

The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.

They added the leader was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."

"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Reforms

The organization is hoping that changes to church regulations will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.

They have spoken with specialists and compiled materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.

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

Accountability Emphasized

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

The report also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."

Moving Forward

Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."

Following the meeting, they voiced optimism for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a connection and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a step in the right direction," they commented.

Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."