đŸ”— Share this article Victims of Church Religious Sexual Abuse Express Optimism After Encounter with the Pontiff Anti-Abuse Organization representatives and survivors gather in Vatican Square after the meeting with Pope Leo People who experienced abuse by church officials have expressed renewed hope following their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Vatican. The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his papacy sent a strong message about his commitment to addressing the issue. Worldwide Strict Approach Pushed The organization is pushing for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any clergy member who admits to or is proven of abusing a minor. This approach has been implemented in the United States. The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in certain regions of the globe" to this proposal, according to Hickey. "Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey stated. Legacy Issue The new Pope, who took the position in May, has taken on this persistent problem that has haunted the Catholic Church for many years. Earlier attempts to resolve the problem included an historic summit on paedophilia within the Church and changes to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse. Deeply Felt Connection For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is personal. The North American advocate shared they were abused by a priest who was later moved between various churches. "Hopefully this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," Hickey expressed. "Both sides share the common objective, we seek to eliminate abuse by religious officials." Historic Encounter Seven representatives of the organization, which represents victims and advocates from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office. The meeting, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, 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 hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in North America. Hickey added the Pope was "tender" about their personal experience and appeared "very humble, funny, and approachable." "Victims 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 sincere, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us." Pope Leo leads religious service in the Vatican on recently Canon Law Changes The group is hoping that changes to canon law will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy globally. They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they plan to present to the pontiff. "He appeared interested in reviewing it," they remarked. Responsibility Highlighted A recent Vatican-commissioned report emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or personnel in cases of misconduct or failure to act." The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up." Path Ahead The representative shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a challenge for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us." After the meeting, Hickey voiced hope for progress. "We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated. Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."