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Individuals who endured sexual abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.

The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated 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 Advocated

The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has already been adopted in the US.

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

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

Inherited Issue

The new Pope, who assumed the position in spring, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Church for many years.

Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Personal Link

For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.

"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."

Significant Encounter

Multiple members of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.

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

The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.

Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their own story and seemed "modest, funny, and very down to earth."

"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Changes

The organization is hoping that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally.

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

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

Accountability Emphasized

A recently released church-ordered document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."

The document also pointed out that survivors consistently emphasized the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."

Moving Forward

Hickey shared 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."

After the meeting, Hickey expressed hope for future change.

"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," they stated.

They concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative concludes - he valued that."