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People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced renewed hope following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.

The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.

Worldwide Strict Policy Pushed

The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States.

The Pope acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to the representative.

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

Inherited Challenge

The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.

Earlier attempts to address the situation included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Personal Connection

For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between different parishes.

"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."

Historic Encounter

Seven members of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.

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

The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when listening to the account of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.

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

"Victims have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to work with us."

Canon Law Changes

The group is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.

They have consulted experts and gathered materials that they plan to present to the pontiff.

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

Accountability Emphasized

A recently released church-ordered report highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."

The document also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and cover-up."

Path Ahead

Hickey shared they informed the Pope at the start of their meeting: "This represents as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."

Following the encounter, Hickey expressed hope for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a connection and persisting to build that relationship is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.

Hickey concluded that they told with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."