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People who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.

Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the issue.

Global Strict Approach Pushed

The organization is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States.

The Pope recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.

"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey remarked.

Legacy Challenge

The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has inherited this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.

Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.

Personal Link

For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist revealed they were abused by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.

"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to eliminate clergy abuse."

Significant Meeting

Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.

The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.

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

Hickey added the leader was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."

"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."

Canon Law Changes

The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.

They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.

"He appeared interested in looking at it," they remarked.

Responsibility Highlighted

A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

The document also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."

Path Ahead

The representative shared they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."

Following the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.

"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a relationship and continuing to strengthen that bond is a step in the correct path," they stated.

Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he valued that."