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

Gemma Hickey, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the problem.

Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed

The group is pushing for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who confesses to or is found guilty of sexually abusing a child. This approach has been implemented in the United States.

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

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

Inherited Challenge

The new Pope, who assumed the position in spring, has taken on this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years.

Previous efforts to resolve the problem included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.

Personal Connection

For the representative, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for worldwide adoption of the policy is deeply meaningful. The North American advocate revealed they were abused by a clergy member who was subsequently transferred between various churches.

"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to work with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."

Historic Encounter

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

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

The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a female survivor abused at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.

They added the leader was "tender" about their personal story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."

"Victims have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."

Church Regulations Changes

The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.

They have consulted specialists and compiled materials that they will submit to Pope Leo.

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

Accountability Highlighted

A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "necessity of a streamlined protocol for the stepping down and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of misconduct or negligence."

The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."

Path Ahead

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

Following the meeting, Hickey expressed optimism for progress.

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

Hickey added that they shared with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he valued that."