In Ireland, mass baby burials sparked outrage, and the country's Children's Minister has told Pope Francis that the Catholic Church should contribute funds to help make reparations to survivors of a former church-run orphanage where a mass grave of babies' remains was discovered.
Katherine Zappone raised the issue with the pope on Saturday during his visit to Ireland, and on Monday released the contents of a letter she gave him. She appealed to the church to "accept its responsibilities and make reparation for its part in a very shameful chapter of Irish history."
Last year a mass grave containing remains of babies as young as 35 weeks was discovered at the mother-and-baby-home in Tuam, which had sheltered orphans, unmarried mothers and their children. Nearly 800 children were estimated to have perished there between 1925 and 1961.
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