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Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism following their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.

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

Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed

The organization is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the US.

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

"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.

Inherited Issue

The new Pope, who took the position in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.

Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.

"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to work with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."

Historic Encounter

Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.

The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.

The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.

They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "very humble, funny, and approachable."

"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."

Canon Law Reforms

The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.

They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they will present to Pope Leo.

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

Responsibility Emphasized

A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."

The report also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."

Path Ahead

The representative shared they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."

After the meeting, they 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 bond is a move in the right direction," they commented.

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