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The Pope sent the Queen a message as he entered UK airspace as he flew from Rome to Dublin this morning.
Pope Francis extended his “cordial greetings” to the Queen and the UK as he flew over the UK.
The message said: “I extend cordial greetings to your Majesty, the members of the Royal Family, and the people of the United Kingdom as I fly over British airspace on my way to Ireland.
“I willingly invoke upon all of you the abundant blessings of almighty God.”
The papal plane from Rome landed in Dublin around 10.30am on Saturday for the whirlwind trip.
Pope Francis is the second Pope to visit Ireland, the first being Pope John Paul II in 1979.
In his Dublin Castle speech, Pope Francis spoke of his “pain and shame” at the Catholic sex-abuse scandal.
The Pope said: “With regard to the most vulnerable, I cannot fail to acknowledge the grave scandal caused in Ireland by the abuse of young people by members of the Church charged with responsibility for their protection and education.
“The failure of ecclesiastical authorities – bishops, religious superiors, priests and others – adequately to address these repellent crimes has rightly given rise to outrage and remains a source of pain and shame for the Catholic community.
“I myself share those sentiments.”
The Pope spoke to thousands of supporters in Croke Park stadium in Dublin to address the Festival of Families.
It is estimated the audience was around 82,500 people.
Many rose to their feet as he approached.
he also met with survivors of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church.
The papal visit to Ireland has so far been dominated by the Vatican’s response to clerical abuse.
In a powerful speech made in front of Pope Francis, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar urged the pontiff to show “zero tolerance” to clerics who had abused children.
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