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27th Aug 2018

Pope Francis will study a memo on the Tuam mother-and-baby home

Paul Moore

Tuam

796 children were found dead in the Galway location.

Pope Francis said that he would “study” a memo given to him by Minister for Children Katherine Zappone about the Tuam mother-and-baby home in Co Galway.

The Minister briefed the Pope on Saturday about the case, where 796 babies were found buried in a septic tank.

“It touched my heart, that is why I wanted to repeat it during my speech. Now I have the memo there. It’s something I have to study, but I will do it at home,” he told journalists on the plane back to Rome following his visit in Ireland.

As reported by RTÉ, Minister Zappone told the Pope that the authorities had “found mass graves of children, buried children,” telling him “we’re investigating… the church has something to do with this”.

After hearing this news, Pope Francis acknowledged that there was a “complaint” that “once the church maybe had not been helpful”.

The exchange has been described as “polite” and “respectful”.

The Pope said the proposal to ask for forgiveness during the Mass at Dublin’s Phoenix Park came from meeting survivors of clerical abuse.

During his visit, Pope Francis met eight survivors of clerical abuse at the Papal Nuncio’s residence for over 90 minutes.

On Sunday, Pope Francis asked for forgiveness for abuses carried out by members of the Catholic Church during his public mass at the Phoenix Park. “We ask pardon for all the abuses committed in various types of institutions run by male or female religious and by other members of the church,” he said.

While the Pope celebrated mass, at least 1,000 people took part in a silent vigil at the site of a former mother-and- baby Home in Tuam, Co Galway.