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

The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.

Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed

The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States.

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

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

Legacy Issue

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

Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.

"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."

Significant Meeting

Multiple members of the organization, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.

The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.

The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.

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

"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."

Canon Law Reforms

The organization is hoping that changes to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.

They have consulted specialists and gathered materials that they will submit to Pope Leo.

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

Responsibility Emphasized

A recent church-ordered document emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence."

The report also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."

Moving Forward

The representative shared they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us."

After the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a connection and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," they commented.

Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."