Pope Francis will visit Ireland on 25 and 26 of August.
Diarmuid Martin, the Archbishop of Dublin, has stated that Pope Francis will have to address allegations of abuse made against the Catholic Church when he visits here next month.
Pope Francis will arrive at Dublin on the morning of the 25 August where he will be, almost immediately, transferred to Áras an Uachtaráin to visit President Higgins.
During his trip, he will be attending a meeting at Dublin Castle, visiting the Day Centre of the Capuchin Fathers and saying masses at Knock and Phoenix Park before leaving again on Sunday. His full itinerary can be viewed here.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Marian Finucane programme on Saturday morning, the Archbishop said that is important that accusations of abuse be mentioned during his time here – but not to be referenced as part of the past, but rather, a part of the present.
He said that wounds from such incidents still run deep, and these wounds are still emerging.
Archbishop Diarmuid Martin is live on air with Marian. He said that the Pope decided to come to Ireland because it has changed esp since 1979 #WMOT2018 Click here to listen https://t.co/DpSTV19DzV
— Brendan O’Connor (@RadioBrendanRTE) July 21, 2018
Archbishop Martin referred to institutions such as the Magdelene Laundries and the Mother and Baby homes during his interview.
You can listen back to this interview here.
JOE got in contact with the Archbishop’s press office and is awaiting a reply.
Earlier this year, the Archbishop referenced Pope Francis’ character on Sunday with Miriam on RTÉ Radio 1.
“[He’s] a complex figure, not all smiles. He’s determined, he knows when people are not being true to him, not being loyal to him. He’s nobody’s fool. When he wants to do something, he’ll do it.”
“He’s a free man”, the Archbishop added, “he’s in nobody’s pocket.”
Three weeks ago, a group of self-proclaimed “peaceful protesters” came together in a bid to acquire a huge amount of free tickets for Pope Francis’s visit and not use them, to ensure a low turnout at events.
The movement is led by a controversial Facebook event entitled Say Nope To The Pope, which is protesting the Pontiff’s planned visit and encouraging people who object to the Catholic Church to book tickets in their dozens and not turn up to the events in both Phoenix Park and Knock.
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