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Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed renewed hope after their initial encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.

The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.

Global Strict Policy Advocated

The organization is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.

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

"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is resistance," they remarked.

Legacy Issue

The new Pope, who took the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding issue that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.

Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.

Personal Connection

For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between various churches.

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

Significant Meeting

Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.

The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.

The Pope was described as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in North America.

They added the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and seemed "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."

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

Canon Law Reforms

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

They have consulted specialists and compiled documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.

"He appeared engaged in looking at it," Hickey remarked.

Accountability Highlighted

A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."

Moving Forward

The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the start of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."

Following the encounter, Hickey expressed hope for future change.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and establishing a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.

Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story concludes - he valued that."