AFTER years of acrimony and painful revelations involving  the church-run Native residential schools, some form of resolution may finally be at hand.

Sacred Walk is the blanket term for a series of events in early March, to be held in various Canadian cities. The tour is aimed at introducing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), which will explore the history of Canada’s residential schools.

The ‘walk’ will consist of both symbolic  and educational events, involving participants from the Anglican, United and Presbyterian churches, and members of the Assembly of First Nations  (AFN).

A ceremonial walk will take place March 5, beginning at the Vancouver School of Theology and ending at the Museum of Anthropology at UBC.

In preparation for the Commission, seven Catholic bishops met for the first time with the head of the AFN  January 29. Sylvain Lavoie, Archbishop for Keewatin-The Pas, said he hopes the TRC hearings will be “balanced.” He elaborated, saying  the hearings should include not only the experiences of aboriginal victims of abuse, but also the stories of the religious sisters, brothers and priests who gave their lives to working in the schools.

“There was a lot of good intentions,” Lavoie told a news conference following the meeting. “Sometimes the very people staffing the schools were perhaps in some ways victims themselves of a flawed system, of unreal expectations and certainly perhaps very unjust working hours.”

Lavoie added: “I think we’ll be able to tell the full story, which I think Canada needs to hear.”

AFN National Chief Phil Fontaine said he recognized thousands of Catholic congregation members worked in the schools “in what they sincerely believed to be in the best interest of Indian Residential School students.”

However, he cautioned, “it is important for these religious communities to both openly acknowledge their role in Indian Residential Schools and to hear directly from First Nations regarding their experiences. The assistance and participation of the Catholic organizations are integral in the healing and reconciliation process.”

“Certainly, mistakes were made and we’re open to acknowledging that and being responsible but, most of all, we’re hoping the story is . . . balanced,” Lavoie said.

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A 1901 photo of students and staff at St. Paul's Indian Industrial School, in Middlechurch, Manitoba.

The TRC, part of the $2.2 billion Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, will begin hearing testimony this year from victims of sexual and physical abuse at schools run by various religious denominations and more than 40 Catholic entities – dioceses and religious orders.

 This is not the first time a bishop has talked publicly about participation in the TRC. Last October, Winnipeg Archbishop James Weisgerber, who was then president of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB), told Canadian Catholic News the bishops “want to be very positively involved.”

The TRC will begin hearings once a chair and two commissioners are selected by  Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl and the AFN national chief. The TRC received about 300 suggested names for these roles.

The settlement agreement includes a government compensation package for every student who attended the schools.

The 40-plus Catholic dioceses and religious orders that ran residential schools are responsible for $80 million dollars towards healing and reconciliation. That figure includes cash settlements and in-kind services.

The Catholic entities have not been part of the overall compensation for mere attendance at the schools. Some have argued the schools were a form a “cultural genocide” because they separated students from their families, communities and their languages.

Almost two years ago, after the settlement was announced, Weisgerber, speaking on his own behalf and not as archbishop, said the prevailing narrative that residential schools were entirely responsible for the plight of Canada’s native people needed to be challenged. That narrative also suggests children were routinely sexually and physically abused.

March 2008