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Individuals who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.

Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the problem.

Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated

The group is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This policy has been implemented in the United States.

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

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

Legacy Issue

The new Pope, who took the position in May, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.

Earlier attempts to address the situation included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Personal Connection

For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.

"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."

Significant Encounter

Seven members of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.

The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.

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

Hickey added the leader was "tender" about their personal story 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 making empty promises," they stated. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Reforms

The group is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach globally.

They have consulted experts and compiled materials that they will submit to the pontiff.

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

Accountability Emphasized

A recent Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."

Moving Forward

Hickey revealed they told the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."

Following the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.

"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a step in the right direction," they stated.

Hickey added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."