We must hope Pope Francis’s apology was merely the beginning toward Catholic Church accountability and repair around residential schools.
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When Pope Francis visited Canada in July 2022, he consciously and intentionally began a journey into the complex and disturbing relationship between the Catholic Church and Indigenous Peoples.
As people reflect upon Pope Francis’s passing, his apology on residential schools and its impacts needs to be explored three years after it was delivered.
The Pope’s apology could mark a new way forward if the Catholic Church makes genuine reparations for the evils it perpetrated.
Apologizing for people versus the establishment that upheld not only the Indian Residential Schools system but protected – and continues to protect — the people who committed the crimes is horrifying.
Whether this apology has truly advanced the goal of healing may become evident only in years and decades to come.
Residential schools and the papal bulls justifying the doctrine of discovery call out for concrete acts of atonement and reparation on the part of the church.
Pope Francis’ visit concerns all Canadians. It’s about our relationship to history and the construction of a state that marginalized Indigenous people and tried to assimilate them.
It is reasonable to expect that any apology from the Pope will be met with mixed responses.
Pope Francis and the Catholic Church must make a plan with Indigenous Peoples, not for us, in order to walk the path of reconciliation. Some initial suggestions of what a plan might include.
Top contributors
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Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream; June Callwood Professor of Social Justice; Special Advisor on Indigenous Initiatives, Victoria University, University of Toronto
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Assistant Professor, Sociology Department, University of Lethbridge
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Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Theological Studies, Conrad Grebel University College, University of Waterloo
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Associate Vice President (Indigenous Engagement), University of Regina
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Director, First Peoples Studies Program, Associate Professor, School of Community and Public Affairs, Concordia University
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Associate Professor, Theological Studies, Concordia University
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Professor Emeritus, HIstory Department and School of Public and International Affairs, York University, Canada
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Professeure titulaire, directrice du programme en études autochtones, Université de Montréal