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Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.

The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.

Global Strict Policy Advocated

The organization is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.

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

"Everyone was practical when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.

Legacy Issue

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

Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.

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For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between various churches.

"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."

Significant Meeting

Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents victims and supporters from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.

The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.

The Pope was described as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.

They added the Pope was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."

"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."

Canon Law Changes

The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.

They have spoken with experts and compiled materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.

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

Accountability Emphasized

A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."

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

Path Ahead

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

Following the encounter, they expressed optimism for future change.

"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.

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