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People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism following their first encounter with the new Pope at the Vatican.

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

Global Strict Policy Advocated

The organization is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the US.

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

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

Inherited Issue

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

Previous efforts to address the problem included an unprecedented summit on paedophilia within the Church and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.

Personal Connection

For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently moved between various churches.

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to end abuse by religious officials."

Historic Meeting

Multiple representatives of the organization, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.

The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.

The Pope was described as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.

Hickey noted the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."

"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."

Canon Law Reforms

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

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

"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.

Accountability Emphasized

A recent Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."

The document also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "urgent need for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up."

Path Ahead

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

Following the meeting, they expressed hope for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," they commented.

They concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I believe like we can change how the story ends - he appreciated that."