🔗 Share this article Victims of Catholic Religious Sexual Abuse Express Hope After Encounter with the Pontiff Anti-Abuse Organization representatives and victims pose in Vatican Square after the meeting with the Pontiff People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See. The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's choice to engage with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the issue. Global Strict Policy Advocated The group 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 child. This policy has already been adopted in the US. The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative. "We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked. Legacy Issue The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for decades. Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse. Personal Connection For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches. "Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials." Significant Meeting Multiple members of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office. The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative. The Pope 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. They noted the leader was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth." "Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to work with us." The Pontiff celebrates Mass in the Vatican on recently Church Regulations Reforms The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide. They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they will present to the pontiff. "He appeared interested in reviewing it," they noted. Responsibility Highlighted A recently released Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or negligence." The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up." Moving Forward The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us." After the encounter, Hickey expressed hope for progress. "We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," they commented. Hickey concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."