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People who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope after their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.

The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.

Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated

The organization is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.

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

"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey stated.

Inherited Challenge

The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has taken on this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for decades.

Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.

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For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a priest who was later moved between various churches.

"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to end clergy abuse."

Significant Meeting

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

The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.

The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.

Hickey noted the leader was "compassionate" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, funny, and approachable."

"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to work with us."

Canon Law Changes

The organization is hoping that revisions to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.

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

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

Accountability Emphasized

A recent church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."

The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."

Path Ahead

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

Following the encounter, they expressed optimism for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a connection and continuing to build that bond is a step in the right direction," they stated.

They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."