Pope asks for forgiveness in emotional end to Ireland visit
THE Pope has asked for forgiveness for the crimes of church figures in Ireland as he laid bare a litany of abuse and mistreatment.
Addressing a large crowd at an open air Mass in Dublin, as his historic visit to the country drew to a close, Francis said the church hierarchy had been guilty of cover-ups and failing to show compassion.
Praying for the strength to achieve justice for the victims, the Pope referred to his private meeting with eight abuse survivors on Saturday evening, explaining that he wanted to take up what they had said to him.
“We ask forgiveness for the abuses in Ireland, abuses of power, of conscience, and sexual abuses perpetrated by members with roles of responsibility in the church,” he said.
The reverberations of a litany of clerical sex crimes have cast a shadow over the first papal visit to Ireland since 1979.
The Pope’s plea for forgiveness rang out around Phoenix Park as elsewhere in Dublin survivors and campaigners protested at his visit.
A vigil for the victims was also held at the site of the mother and baby home in Tuam, Co Galway, where a mass grave containing around 800 babies not afforded proper burials was recently uncovered.
The Pope told pilgrims who braved the rain and a three kilometre hike to reach Phoenix Park: “We ask forgiveness for the times that, as a church, we did not show the survivors of whatever kind of abuse the compassion and the seeking of justice and truth through concrete actions.”
At an address at the holy shrine of Knock, in Co Mayo, he said no-one could fail to be moved by stories of young abuse victims who were “robbed of their innocence” and left with “painful memories”.