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People who endured abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.

The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to addressing the issue.

Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed

The group is advocating for a global strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.

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

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

Legacy Issue

The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has plagued the Church for decades.

Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.

Deeply Felt Link

For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between different parishes.

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

Historic Encounter

Multiple representatives of the coalition, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.

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

The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the story of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.

They noted the leader was "tender" about their personal story and appeared "modest, funny, and approachable."

"Victims have consistently sought 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 very open and keen to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Reforms

The group is advocating that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the strict approach globally.

They have spoken with experts and gathered documents that they will present to the pontiff.

"He appeared engaged in looking at it," they noted.

Accountability Highlighted

A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."

The report also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."

Moving Forward

Hickey shared they told the Pope at the start of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."

After the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for progress.

"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a move in the correct path," Hickey commented.

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