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Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.

The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.

Global Strict Approach Pushed

The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the US.

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

"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they stated.

Inherited Issue

The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for many years.

Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."

Significant Encounter

Seven members of the coalition, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.

The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.

The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.

They noted the Pope was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."

"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."

Canon Law Changes

The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.

They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.

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

Accountability Highlighted

A recently released Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."

Moving Forward

The representative revealed they informed 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 voiced optimism 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 strengthen that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.

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