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Individuals who endured abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.

Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to engage with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the problem.

Worldwide Strict Approach Pushed

The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the US.

The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in certain regions of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.

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

Legacy Challenge

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

Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Personal Link

For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.

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

Significant Encounter

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

The meeting, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.

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

They added the leader was "compassionate" about their personal story and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."

"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."

Canon Law Changes

The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.

They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.

"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they remarked.

Responsibility Emphasized

A recent church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."

The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."

Moving Forward

Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "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 understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.

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