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Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism after their first encounter with Pope Leo at the Vatican.

The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to meet with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.

Global Strict Policy Advocated

The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.

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

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

Legacy Challenge

The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.

Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on child abuse within the institution and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Personal Link

For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is personal. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.

"Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."

Significant Meeting

Seven members of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.

The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.

The Pope was characterized as "very understanding" when hearing the story of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.

They added the leader was "compassionate" about their own story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."

"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Reforms

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

They have consulted specialists and gathered documents that they plan to present to Pope Leo.

"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," they noted.

Responsibility Highlighted

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 misconduct or negligence."

The report also pointed out that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."

Moving Forward

The representative revealed they told the pontiff at the start of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."

After the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for future change.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and establishing a connection and continuing to build that bond is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.

Hickey concluded 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."