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People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.

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

Global Strict Approach Pushed

The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the US.

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

"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated.

Legacy Issue

The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has haunted the Church for many years.

Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.

Personal Link

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

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."

Significant Meeting

Multiple representatives of the coalition, which includes survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.

The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.

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 Pope was "tender" about their own experience and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."

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

Church Regulations Reforms

The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.

They have consulted experts and compiled materials that they will present to Pope Leo.

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

Responsibility Highlighted

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

The report also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."

Path Ahead

Hickey shared they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."

After the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for future change.

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

Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story concludes - he appreciated that."