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

Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.

Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed

The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.

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

"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.

Inherited Challenge

The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has taken on this longstanding problem that has plagued the Church for many years.

Earlier attempts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the institution and changes to church laws to clearly outlaw abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is personal. The North American activist shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between different parishes.

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," they stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to end clergy abuse."

Significant Meeting

Multiple members of the coalition, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.

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

The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.

They noted the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal story and appeared "very humble, funny, and very down to earth."

"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Changes

The group is advocating that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.

They have consulted experts and gathered documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.

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

Responsibility Highlighted

A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."

The report also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for inaction and cover-up."

Path Ahead

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

After the encounter, Hickey voiced hope for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to strengthen that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.

Hickey added that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."