King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium formally received Pope Francis at the Palace of Laeken on Friday to begin his three day trip to Belgium.

The Belgian King and Queen met His Holiness when the Papal Plane landed on Thursday evening but they formally welcomed him on Friday. They met with him before they moved to the Great Gallery where King Philippe, Pope Francis and Belgian Prime Minister, Alexander de Croo, addressed a gathered group. 

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The Belgian king’s speech addressed several difficult but necessary topics for Belgian Catholics. King Philippe said ”Most Holy Father, you have intransigently denounced the unspeakable tragedy of sexual abuse committed within the ecclesiastical institution. You have taken concrete action to combat this abominable violence. Children have been horribly wounded, scarred for life. The same goes for the victims of forced adoption.”

The Belgian king continued: ‘‘It took so long for their cries to be heard and acknowledged. It took so long to seek ways to “repair” the irreparable.”

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As the wife of a Catholic sovereign, Queen Mathilde has privilege du blanc, meaning that she can wear white when meeting the Pope when women are required to wear black. 

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The Queen of the Belgians wore a white Meer Couture coat dress and nude suede pumps for the meeting. She wore the same coat dress when she met him in September 2023. 

Pope Francis is in Belgium for three days and will celebrate a huge open air Mass on Sunday which will be attended by King Philippe, Queen Mathilde and members of their royal family including the monarch’s half sister, Princess Delphine.