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People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope after their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.

Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.

Global Strict Approach Advocated

The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the United States.

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

"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.

Legacy Challenge

The new Pope, who took the position in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has haunted the Church for many years.

Earlier attempts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between different parishes.

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."

Significant Meeting

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

The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.

The Pope was described as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.

Hickey noted the leader was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."

"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and keen to work with us."

Canon Law Reforms

The group is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.

They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.

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

Responsibility Emphasized

A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."

The report also noted that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."

Moving Forward

The representative revealed they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."

Following the meeting, they voiced optimism for future change.

"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," they stated.

Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."