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

Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.

Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed

The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the US.

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

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

Legacy Issue

The new Pope, who assumed the position in spring, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.

Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

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

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."

Historic Meeting

Multiple members of the organization, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.

The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.

The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.

They noted the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and approachable."

"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."

Canon Law Reforms

The group is hoping that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally.

They have consulted experts and gathered materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.

"He appeared engaged in looking at it," they noted.

Accountability Highlighted

A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."

Moving Forward

Hickey revealed they informed 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 meeting, Hickey expressed hope for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.

Hickey concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."