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

The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.

Worldwide Strict Policy Advocated

The organization is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is proven 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 globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.

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

Legacy Issue

The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.

Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were abused by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.

"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."

Significant Meeting

Multiple members of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from more than 30 countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.

The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.

The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.

They noted the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."

"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Changes

The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.

They have spoken with specialists and gathered documents that they will submit to Pope Leo.

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

Accountability Emphasized

A recent Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."

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

Path Ahead

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

After the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.

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