The announcement of the papal visit led to a wide variety of opinions from people across the nation.

Marie Collins is a clerical sexual abuse survivor who has campaigned for the protection of children and justice for abuse survivors.

“I do not anticipate meeting with Pope Francis during his visit but if I did I would ask him to follow up his strong words against child abuse in the church with strong actions,” she says.

“I believe Pope Francis, unlike some of his predecessors, does understand the harm sexual abuse does to a victim’s life and is sincere when he condemns those who commit such abuse or those who protect them, but this is not enough.

"More than understanding or words are needed, there must be real structural change in the church to ensure the past is not repeated.

“I am sure Pope Francis will be welcomed by Catholics in Ireland. I will not be taking part in any protests as this has never been my way to try and bring change but there will most probably be protests against his visit by those who are still suffering the effects of abuse by members of his church or who feel he has not done enough to tackle the issue.

While the history of the Catholic church in Ireland in the context of clerical child abuse and religious institutional abuse is not the focus of his visit, it cannot be ignored.”

We Are Church Ireland, a group committed to ending injustices in the Catholic church, such as the language used towards LGBTQ+ people and the status of women.

Spokesperson of the organisation Brendan Butler says that they do not oppose the Pope’s visit to Ireland, but that he could be using his time here more wisely. Among other things, they would like him to meet with victims of clerical sexual abuse, such as Marie Collins.

More than understanding or words are needed, there must be real structural change in the church to ensure the past is not repeated

“She [Collins] wasn’t adequately recognised during her time in Rome… This would be a way of recognising the problem itself and the work she has done,” says Butler.

Pope Francis met with Collins before and they shook hands.

The site where the remains of 796 babies and young children were found in Tuam should be another stop on the Pope’s agenda, according to Butler.

“It is an opportunity lost if he doesn’t [visit Tuam],” he says.

“Coming over and flying from A to B and everyone cheering like he is a pop star shouldn’t be what will happen, but it probably will be the case.

“We intend on the last day [of the pope’s visit] to have a presence, not a protest.”

Many are looking forward to the upcoming visit, including second year DCU student Brian Kiernan who will be attending the Croke Park and Phoenix Park events with his family.

“I am looking forward to seeing the Pope because you don’t get to do that every day and coming together as a family will be good,” says Kiernan.

Editor of The Irish Catholic newspaper, Michael Kelly, is also looking forward to the proceedings.

He will be attending basically all of the events aside from Knock. It will be a balancing act between reporting for his paper and attending the events with his parents.

“I don’t think Pope Francis apologising [to clerical abuse survivors] is very important because he has already done this enough. Instead he should listen to the experiences of the abused. It would be a huge mistake not to facilitate a meeting. It will indicate a terrible tone-deafness if he doesn’t.

“The church has been through the ringer over the past few years. The visit should try to re-claim that sense of enthusiasm.”