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Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.

Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's choice to meet with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to tackling the problem.

Global Strict Policy Pushed

The group is pushing for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the US.

The Pontiff recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.

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

Inherited Challenge

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

Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an historic meeting on child abuse within the Church and revisions to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.

Personal Link

For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American activist revealed they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between various churches.

"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to work with him," Hickey stated. "We have the common objective, we want to end clergy abuse."

Historic Encounter

Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents victims and supporters from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.

The discussion, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a full hour, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.

The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing 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 own experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and approachable."

"Survivors have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."

Canon Law Reforms

The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally.

They have spoken with specialists and compiled materials that they will present to Pope Leo.

"He seemed interested in reviewing it," Hickey noted.

Responsibility Highlighted

A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."

The document also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."

Path Ahead

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

After the encounter, they voiced hope for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a connection and continuing to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey stated.

They added that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can alter how the narrative ends - he valued that."