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Individuals who experienced abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope after their first encounter with the new Pope at the Holy See.

The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.

Global Strict Approach Pushed

The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.

The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to Hickey.

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

Legacy Challenge

The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.

Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.

Personal Connection

For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.

"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."

Significant Meeting

Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.

The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.

The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.

They added the Pope was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."

"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Changes

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

They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they will present to the pontiff.

"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," they noted.

Responsibility Emphasized

A recent Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."

The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."

Path Ahead

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

Following the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for future change.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a relationship and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a step in the right direction," they commented.

They 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."