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People who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.

Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the issue.

Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed

The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.

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

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

Inherited Issue

The new Pope, who took the position in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for decades.

Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

For Hickey, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we seek to end clergy abuse."

Significant Encounter

Seven members of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pope in his Vatican office.

The meeting, initially planned for 20 minutes, extended to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.

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

They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, 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 believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."

Church Regulations Reforms

The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the strict approach worldwide.

They have spoken with specialists and compiled materials that they plan to submit to the pontiff.

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

Accountability Highlighted

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

The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."

Moving Forward

Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."

Following the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.

"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a connection and continuing to build that relationship is a move in the right direction," they stated.

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