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

Gemma Hickey, who leads Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to meet with them so soon in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the problem.

Global Strict Policy Pushed

The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the US.

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

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

Legacy Challenge

The current pontiff, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for decades.

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

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For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist revealed they were abused by a priest who was later moved between various churches.

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we aim to collaborate with him," Hickey stated. "We have the same goal, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials."

Significant Meeting

Multiple members of the organization, which represents survivors and supporters from more than 30 nations, engaged with the Pope in his official residence.

The discussion, initially planned for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.

The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when listening to the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada.

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

"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and very open and keen to work with us."

Canon Law Reforms

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

They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they will present to the pontiff.

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

Accountability Highlighted

A recent Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence."

The document also pointed out that victims repeatedly stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."

Path Ahead

Hickey shared 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."

After the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for progress.

"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a connection and persisting to strengthen that bond is a move in the right direction," Hickey commented.

Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can alter how the story ends - he appreciated that."