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Individuals who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.

Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his dedication to addressing the problem.

Worldwide Strict Approach Pushed

The group 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 policy has been implemented in the United States.

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

"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they stated.

Legacy Challenge

The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has taken on this persistent problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.

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

Deeply Felt Link

For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently transferred between various churches.

"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."

Significant Encounter

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

The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.

The pontiff was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.

Hickey noted the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."

"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Reforms

The group is hoping that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.

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

"He appeared interested in reviewing it," they remarked.

Responsibility Emphasized

A recent church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or removal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."

The document also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."

Moving Forward

Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."

Following the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for future change.

"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 strengthen that relationship is a step in the correct path," they commented.

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."