The Pope’s visit to Ireland this weekend has ruffled a lot of feathers – and nearly all online opinion has been negative.
Pope Francis landed in Dublin at 11am on Saturday, to meet with President D Higgins, to take part in an address with Leo Varadkar at Dublin castle and address over 100,000 people on Sunday.
And while many streets in Dublin have been covered in flags and posters supporting the Pope, the main focus online has been on abuse victims of the Catholic church.
Social media star James Kavanagh has been very vocal about is disgust at the visit, the amount of money being spent by the state on the visit, and why the church “cover-up” should be treated as a crime.
Eating your brother’s Easter egg: a SIN. Raping a child: a CRIME. Cursing at your mother: a SIN. Beating children & women: CRIMES. Can we use terminology correctly pls? Otherwise it continues to fluff the 1000s of heinous CRIMES the Catholic Church has committed. #PopeInIreland pic.twitter.com/iXGHWc9PVn
— James Kavanagh (@JamesKavanagh_) August 24, 2018
Just a lil reminder of the time cool hip fun selfie-taking Pope Francis called victims of clerical sex abuse liars. He then backtracked. But this is where his head/ the Vatican is: defense of the Church is paramount. https://t.co/QfCBXGbKT5
— James Kavanagh (@JamesKavanagh_) August 22, 2018
And Wicklow singer Hozier also came out in support of the “Stand 4 Truth” movement, who are coming together to march for abuse victims in Ireland.
The March will coincide with the Pope’s address on Sunday, and Hozier has said he will be there.
I’ll be joining the #Stand4Truth on Sunday at 3pm for a show of compassion and solidarity towards those who have been harmed by the actions of the Church. All are welcome. https://t.co/d3lkN2Ksn4
— Hozier (@Hozier) August 23, 2018
There has also already been marches in Dublin City Centre, with many stating although they are happy the Pope is here, they want justice for people who have been affected by the institution.
‘We’re saying welcome to Pope Francis… but there is a BUT’ Colm Holmes of We Are Church Ireland leading a demonstration on Ha Penny Bridge to coincide with the pontiff’s arrival in Dublin #PopeInIreland pic.twitter.com/jCPfhF7Niw
— Daragh Brophy (@DaraghBroph) August 25, 2018
Blue ribbons have been tied to the railings of the Ha Penny Bridge in support of abuse victims #PopeInIreland pic.twitter.com/Yb7IhVgy4M
— Daragh Brophy (@DaraghBroph) August 25, 2018