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People who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican.

The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's choice to engage with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the problem.

Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Advocated

The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the US.

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

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

Legacy Challenge

The current pontiff, who took the role in spring, has inherited this persistent issue that has haunted the Church for decades.

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

Deeply Felt Connection

For the representative, who prefers gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."

Significant Encounter

Multiple members of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.

The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the Pope "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.

The pontiff was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America.

They added the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."

"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and eager to work with us."

Canon Law Reforms

The organization is hoping that changes to canon law will enable the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally.

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

"He appeared interested in looking at it," Hickey noted.

Responsibility Emphasized

A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or negligence."

The report also noted that survivors repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."

Path Ahead

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

After the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to strengthen that bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey commented.

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