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People who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their initial meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.

The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.

Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed

The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.

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

"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," they stated.

Inherited Issue

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

Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.

"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 seek to end abuse by religious officials."

Significant Meeting

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

The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.

The Pope was described as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.

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

"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Changes

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

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

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

Accountability Highlighted

A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct 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 cover-up."

Path Ahead

The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."

Following the meeting, Hickey voiced optimism for progress.

"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.

Hickey added that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he valued that."