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Individuals who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed fresh optimism following their first meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.

The board president, heading the anti-abuse organization, stated that the pontiff's decision to meet with them so early in his papacy sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the issue.

Global Zero-Tolerance Policy Advocated

The group is pushing for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of sexually abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.

The Pontiff recognized that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.

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

Inherited Challenge

The current pontiff, who took the role in May, has taken on this longstanding problem that has haunted the Church for decades.

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

Deeply Felt Connection

For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later transferred between various churches.

"Hopefully 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 clergy abuse."

Significant Meeting

Multiple members of the coalition, which represents victims and advocates from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.

The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.

The Pope was described as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.

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

"Victims have long wanted a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey commented. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."

Church Regulations Reforms

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

They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they plan to submit to the pontiff.

"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," Hickey remarked.

Responsibility Emphasized

A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "necessity 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 bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."

Path Ahead

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

After the encounter, they expressed optimism for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and persisting to build that bond is a step in the correct path," Hickey stated.

Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."