Pope begs forgiveness for 'irreparable' harm from sex abuse

17/1/2018 3:33

        Pope Francis begged for forgiveness for the "irreparable damage" done to children who were raped and molested by priests, opening his visit to Chile by diving head-first into a scandal that has greatly hurt the Catholic Church's credibility here and cast a cloud over his visit.
        
        Francis faced controversy on another front as well: Overnight three more Catholic churches were torched, including one burned to the ground in the southern region where Francis will visit on Wednesday to meet with Chile's indigenous peoples.
        
        While not causing any injuries, the nine church firebombings in the past few days have marked an unprecedented level of protest against history's first Latin American pope on his home turf.
        
        In Santiago, though, an estimated 400,000 jubilant Chileans turned out in droves for his first public Mass, a massive gathering in the capital's O'Higgins park where St. John Paul II celebrated Mass three decades ago.
        
        Francis took a long, looping ride in his popemobile through the grounds to greet well-wishers, some of whom had camped out overnight to secure a spot.