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

The board president, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the issue.

Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed

The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the US.

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

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

Inherited Challenge

The new Pope, who assumed the position in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has haunted the Church for decades.

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

Personal Link

For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later moved between various churches.

"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to work with him," Hickey expressed. "We have the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."

Historic Encounter

Seven members of the organization, which represents survivors and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his official residence.

The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.

The Pope was described as "very understanding" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.

Hickey noted the leader was "tender" about their own story and appeared "modest, funny, and very down to earth."

"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I felt like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to collaborate with us."

Canon Law Changes

The group is hoping that changes to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the strict approach globally.

They have spoken with experts and compiled documents that they plan to submit to the pontiff.

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

Accountability Emphasized

A recently released Vatican-commissioned document highlighted the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

The document also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and concealment."

Path Ahead

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

After the encounter, Hickey voiced optimism for progress.

"We realise 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 bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.

They added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he appreciated that."