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

Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.

Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed

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

The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in certain regions of the globe" to this initiative, according to Hickey.

"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 persistent issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.

Earlier attempts to address the situation included an unprecedented meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.

Personal Connection

For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred between different parishes.

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to end clergy abuse."

Significant Meeting

Seven representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.

The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.

The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.

Hickey added the Pope was "compassionate" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."

"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," 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 church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.

They have consulted specialists and compiled materials that they plan to submit to the pontiff.

"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they noted.

Accountability Highlighted

A recently released Vatican-commissioned 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 negligence."

The document also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."

Moving Forward

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

Following the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a step in the correct path," they stated.

Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."