On Monday morning Pope Francis welcomed two groups of representatives of Canadian indigenous peoples in successive audiences, each lasting about one hour.
According to a statement released by the Holy See Press Office, the Pope met with around ten delegates representing the Métis people and eight representing the Inuit. Several Bishops from the Canadian Bishops’ Conference accompanied the delegations for the meetings.
The press statement noted how Pope Francis wished “to listen and to offer space for the painful stories shared by the survivors.”
The Catholic Bishops of Canada said on June 10, 2021, a plan for an indigenous group to visit Pope Francis had moved forward. The bishops said they are committed to making the visit by the end of the year. The dates for the visit were initially set for December 17-20, 2021 in accordance with international travel guidelines. After a careful assessment of the uncertainty and health risks surrounding international travel amid the recent spread of the Omicron variant, the Bishops of Canada, the Assembly of First Nations, the National Council of Métis, and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami have jointly decided to postpone the delegation that was to visit the Vatican in December 2021 at the earliest opportunity in 2022.
Pope Francis meeting with the delegation of Métis people © Vatican Media“The recent discovery of children’s remains at a burial site at a former residential school in Kamloops, British Columbia, reminds us of a painful past and a legacy that endures,” according to the statement by the bishops. “With the strong encouragement of Pope Francis, the Bishops of Canada are committed to renewing and strengthening relationships with Indigenous Peoples across the country.
“In conversation with indigenous people and communities, both at the local and national level, and bilaterally with the national organizations of the First Nations, Métis, and Inuit, the bishops, promoters of the project, have been preparing, for more than two years now, a delegation of Indigenous people to meet the Holy Father and experience significant moments of dialogue and healing.”
Pope Francis is fully committed to hearing directly from Indigenous peoples, to express his sincere closeness, to address the impact of colonization and the role the Church played in the residential school system, in response to suffering indigenous peoples and the ongoing intergenerational trauma, according to a statement by the Canadian Bishops released June 29, 2021. The Bishops of Canada said they are deeply grateful to the Holy Father for his spirit of openness by generously issuing an invitation for personal meetings with each of the three distinct groups of delegates, First Nations, Métis, and Inuit, as well as a final audience with all of them. the delegates meeting on December 20, 2021.
This pastoral visit will include the participation of a diverse group of elders / ‘knowledge keepers’, residential school survivors, and youth from across the country, accompanied by a small group of bishops and Indigenous leaders. Planning for the delegation is underway and further details will be announced as they become available.
