🔗 Share this article Victims of Catholic Clergy Sex Abuse Express Optimism Following Meeting with Pope Leo End Clergy Abuse Global board members and survivors gather in St. Peter Square following the encounter with Pope Leo People who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican. Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem. Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US. The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey. "We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked. Legacy Issue The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has taken on this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years. Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse. Personal Connection For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches. "Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials." Historic Meeting Seven members of the organization, which includes victims and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office. The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative. The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada. They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable." "Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us." Pope Leo leads religious service in the Vatican on 19 October Church Regulations Reforms The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally. They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they plan to present to the pontiff. "He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked. Accountability Emphasized A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act." The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment." Path Ahead The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a conversation as it was for us." Following the encounter, they voiced hope for future change. "We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and building a connection and continuing to build that bond is a move in the right direction," they commented. Hickey added that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story concludes - he valued that."