A number of church bodies, both Protestant and Catholic, have issued apologies for their involvement in running Canada’s residential schools. However, the response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action #58 has been inadequate. It’s time for this to be remedied. Here is the text of that action item:
“We call upon the Pope to issue an apology to Survivors, their families, and communities for the Roman Catholic Church’s role in the spiritual, cultural, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis children in Catholic-run residential schools. We call for that apology to be similar to the 2010 apology issued to Irish victims of abuse and to occur within one year of the issuing of this Report and to be delivered by the Pope in Canada.”
It’s true that every church has it’s own polity and institutional structure, but it’s time to make some progress on this. It can be done.
Anthony G. Siegrist 