ROME — Pope Francis on April 1 offered a long sought-after apology to Canada’s Indigenous peoples for the Catholic Church’s involvement in the country’s abuse-ridden residential schools and vowed to visit Canada soon.
“For the deplorable conduct of members of the Catholic Church, I ask God’s forgiveness,” said Francis, who described the institutional abuses by church leaders as “contrary to the Gospel of Jesus.”
With those words, Francis fulfilled a request for a papal apology that comes after years of appeals from Canada’s Indigenous community and even Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for the Catholic Church to seek forgiveness for its century-long involvement in the country’s scandal plagued school system for Native children.
The April 1 encounter was the fourth occasion that Francis met with representatives of Canada’s Indigenous community visiting Rome this week. From March 28 – April 1, the pope had previously held separate meetings with delegates from the First Nations, Métis National Council and the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami.
“Through your voices I have been able to touch with my own hands and carry within me, with great sadness in my heart, the stories of suffering, deprivation, discriminatory treatment and various forms of abuse suffered by several of you,” the pope said on Friday.
“It is chilling to think of the will to instill a sense of inferiority, to make someone lose his or her cultural identity, to sever their roots,” he continued.
Throughout the week, Francis listened to firsthand testimonials about the abuses perpetrated in Canada’s residential schools, many of them operated by the Catholic Church.
For over a 100 years, people who attended the institutions were stripped of their Native languages and culture and often forced to convert to Christianity. Widespread abuse within the schools has been documented, with up to 6,000 deaths reported.
“I am greatly grieved,” said Francis on Friday. “It is evident that one cannot transmit the contents of the faith in a way that is foreign to the faith itself.”
“Jesus taught us to welcome, love, serve and love the people,” he continued. “It is terrible when, precisely in the name of faith, we give a counter-testimony to the Gospel.” (more)