The Kamloops Indian Residential School where the bodies of 215 children were found in unmarked graves.
OTTAWA-When Pope Francis first learned of the graves found at the sites of Canadian residential schools, he expressed sympathy and sorrow, but offered no plans to go further. However, Canadian and Indigenous outcry rose for at least an apology for the Catholic Church's role in the abuse and death of thousands of Indigenous children.
In recent weeks, investigators using ground-penetrating radar found hundreds of unmarked graves at the sites of two residential schools for Indigenous children. The discoveries-more than 600 graves in one school, 215 bodies in another-have revived calls, including from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, for the pope to formally apologize.
Up until the 1970s, more than 150,000 Indigenous children were forced to attend state-funded boarding schools in an effort to assimilate them into Canadian society. Thousands of children died there of disease and other causes, with many bodies never returned to their families.
About 75 percent of the 130 residential schools were run by Roman Catholic missionary congregations, with others operated by the Presbyterian, Anglican and the United Church of Canada, which today is the largest Protestant denomination in the country.
The government formally apologized for the policy and abuses in 2008. In addition, the Presbyterian, Anglican and United churches have apologized for their roles in the abuse.
While the request for an apology is still being unanswered, new reports from the Vatican reveal that Pope Francis has agreed to meet in December with Indigenous survivors of Canada's residential schools. He has said that he is "deeply committed to hearing directly from Indigenous peoples" and would use the meetings for "expressing his heartfelt closeness, addressing the impact of colonization and the role of the Church in the residential school system, in the hopes of responding to the suffering of Indigenous peoples and the ongoing effects of intergenerational trauma."
If pandemic conditions allow, the delegations visiting the Vatican will include three groups including First Nations, Metis and Inuit during a Dec. 17-20 visit. The pope will then preside over a final audience with all three groups Dec. 20. The delegations will include survivors of the residential schools, Indigenous elders and youth, as well as Indigenous leaders and Canadian bishops.
A papal apology was one of 94 recommendations from Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, but the Canadian bishops conference said in 2018 that the pope could not personally apologize for the residential schools.
Pope Benedict XVI, who retired in 2013, met with some former students and victims in 2009 and told them of his "personal anguish" over their suffering. But, like Francis, he offered no apology. However, in a 2015 visit to Bolivia, in the presence of Indigenous groups, the Argentine pope, apologized for the sins and crimes committed by the Catholic Church against Indigenous peoples during the colonial era conquest of the Americas. Some speculate that he may apologize during the December meetings.
