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People who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism following their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.

Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the issue.

Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated

The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses 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 some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.

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

Legacy Challenge

The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has taken on this persistent issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.

Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The North American activist shared they were abused by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.

"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to end abuse by religious officials."

Historic Encounter

Multiple members of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.

The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.

The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.

Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."

"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."

Canon Law Changes

The organization is advocating that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.

They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.

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

Responsibility Highlighted

A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

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

Moving Forward

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

After the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for progress.

"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a connection and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a step in the correct path," Hickey stated.

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