In what he has described as a 'penitential voyage', Pope Francis has travelled to Canada where he is expected to apologise to Indigenous people for abuse by missionaries at state-funded Christian schools.
Pope Francis is expected to apologise to Canada's Indigenous people this week for missionaries' abuse at state-funded Christian schools.Pope Francis will meet with Indigenous survivors of abuse at the site of a former state-funded Christian school
Pope Francis said it was a "penitential voyage" and urged prayers in particular for elderly people and grandparents. Grand Chief George Arcand Junior of the Confederacy of Treaty Six First Nations said they wanted justice for the abusers, financial reparations and the return of Indigenous artefacts held by the Vatican.He said he hoped that with the papal apology "we could begin our journey of healing … and change the way things have been for our people for many, many years".
The Canadian government has admitted that physical and sexual abuse was rampant in the state-funded Christian schools that operated from the 19th century to the 1970s. Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission called for a papal apology to be delivered on Canadian soil in 2015. Reverend Cristino Bouvette, who is coordinating the papal visit and is partly of Indigenous heritage, said he hoped the visit was healing for those who "have borne a wound, a cross that they have suffered with, in some cases for generations."The Inuit community is seeking the Vatican's help in extraditing priest Reverend Joannes Rivoire, who ministered to Inuit communities until he returned to France in the 1990s.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Pope in Canada to apologise for abuse of Indigenous children in church schools‘This is a trip of penance,’ says Pope Francis, ahead of mass to be held during five-day trip
Read more »
Pope in Canada to apologise for abuse of Indigenous children in church schools‘This is a trip of penance,’ says Pope Francis, ahead of mass to be held during five-day trip
Read more »
Grandma's WWII Darwin-Sydney exodus celebrated in school's Indigenous curriculumJust 10 when she and other Aboriginal children fled Croker Island when nearby Darwin was bombed during World War II, an influential grandmother's story is being kept alive by her grandchildren.
Read more »
Parents set on private schools even as cost of living pressures bitePrivate school enrolments usually reflect broader economic movements, but the pandemic experience has changed the ball game.
Read more »
Lollipop lady hangs up her whistle after 31 years of service“We love you and we will miss you”: Brunswick South Primary School is saying farewell to a veteran school crossing supervisor. | By CarolynAnneWebb
Read more »
Twelve young Kimberley people died by suicide. School was touted as a solution — but what happened in Halls Creek?WA's Education Minister Sue Ellery once described efforts to address a truancy crisis in Halls Creek as 'amazing'. Now her department is investigating as families accuse the government of botching school attendance plans.
Read more »