This is with reference to the news report 'Pope apologises for school abuses in Canada' (TGE, July 26). It is sad that Pope Francis has once again taken upon himself the guilt of the Catholic church by apologising profusely and begging for forgiveness for the pain and trauma inflicted on 1,50,000 indigenous children of Canada, who were victims of physical torture and sexual abuse by Catholic missionaries in church-run schools, from the 19th century till the late '70s. While there is nothing much that can be done to undo the damage caused, the least the church can do now, is to reach out to the victims and their families through their outreach programmes, healing sessions and pastoral care. In this context it is important to mention Pope Francis' most striking metaphor of the church as a 'field hospital' which aptly summarises the church's mission of seeing the suffering world spread out beyond the gates of St Peter square in Rome and reaching out and healing the wounds of the victims of suffering and abuse.
