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Pope Francis Visits Canada for Apology to Native Peoples

Pope Francis visited a small community in the Canadian province of Alberta on Monday to offer an apology for the Roman Catholic Church's mistreatment of native people.

The main native groups of Canada include the Metis, First Nation and Inuit.

The apology was described as "long-awaited."

Appeal for forgiveness

Francis is following through on a decision he made last April. That is when a group of indigenous¹ people went to the Vatican to speak with the church leader. After the meeting, the Pope called the treatment of Canada's native people "deplorable," and asked for forgiveness and promised to make his July visit.

When he arrived at the event in the small community of Maskwacis, he said: "I humbly² beg forgiveness for the evil committed by so many Christians⁴ against the Indigenous peoples." The Pope spoke⁵ in his native language of Spanish and his words were translated into English.

Many of those in attendance wore traditional clothing decorated with beads⁶ and feathered head coverings. The Pope arrived in a wheelchair and watched traditional songs and dances from a raised platform.

Maskwacis is the location where the Ermineskin Indian Residential⁷ School once stood. It is about 100 kilometers south of the city of Edmonton, Alberta.

The schools were set up by Roman Catholic missionaries⁸ to educate the children of indigenous groups in Canada. Missionaries are religious people who go to other countries and try to get people to join their religion.

In their work, the missionaries set up religious schools that operated for about 100 years, ending in the 1970s. However, native children were separated from their families at the missionary⁹ schools.

Because they were away from home, the children were not able to learn traditions from older family members and community leaders.

While they were at the schools, some of the children were treated badly. Some were physically¹⁰ abused by school leaders and others were sexually abused. About 150,000 young people went to the schools over the years.

Government policy

The Canadian government has also talked about its part in permitting the schools and harming the children. The Canadian government admitted the children were given physical punishment for speaking their native language while at the schools. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was also in Alberta with the Pope. He offered an apology for an "incredibly harmful government policy" last year.

Native leaders say they believe the bad treatment of the children prevented them from doing well as adults. While Catholics operated most of the residential schools, others were led by Protestants. Protestants are another Christian³ religious group different from Catholics.

In addition to the abuse, thousands of children died from disease, fires and other causes. Investigators¹¹ say they have found locations at the schools where children who died may have been buried.

The Pope took responsibility for the church's cooperation with the Canadian policy of mixing native people into Canadian society.

The Pope called it "cultural destruction." He also said the missionaries of the time were only going along with the policy of the Canadian government.

He went on to say that remembering the bad actions of the Catholic missionaries and the Canadian government could cause sadness and anger. But he said it was "necessary." He said it was "right to remember" the bad things that happened because forgetting leads to indifference¹².

He also said that asking forgiveness is only the first step in the healing process. He promised an investigation¹³ into the past and research into ways the Catholic Church can help survivors¹⁴.

Francis apologized for not being able to visit all of the indigenous people of Canada who have invited him, noting the size of the country.

Organizers wanted to make sure as many native people as possible could be present.

‘Mixed emotions'

Maskwacis is a center for four groups of Cree people. It is now home to a school that is run by local people and supports the study of native culture.

Greg Desjarlais is a leader of a local native group. He said there are "mixed emotions" across Canada about the Pope's visit. He said the visit brings up sad feelings about the young people who died at the schools, but also offers hope that people might start to feel better after an apology.

"Our people have been traumatized," he said. "Now I hope the world will see why our people are so hurt."

On Monday, the Pope also visited a Catholic church whose members are mostly indigenous people. The church includes native languages and traditions in its religious ceremonies.

Fernie Marty is a religious leader called an elder. Marty said: "I never in my life thought we would see a pope here at Sacred Heart Church."

Francis will also visit other native groups in Canada. His six-day trip includes visits to other sites in Alberta, a visit to the province of Quebec and to the territory of Nunavut.

Words in This Story

await – v. to wait for someone or something

incredible – adj. difficult or impossible to believe

indigenous – adj. produced, living, or existing naturally in a particular region or environment

beg – v. to ask strongly for something

decorate – v. to add something that will make an item look nicer

location –n. a place

trauma¹⁵ – n. a very difficult or unpleasant experience that causes someone to have mental or emotional problems usually for a long time

1 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

2 humbly   

adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地

参考例句：

• We humbly beg Your Majesty to show mercy. 我们恳请陛下发发慈悲。
• "You must be right, Sir,'said John humbly. “你一定是对的，先生，”约翰恭顺地说道。

3 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

4 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 beads   

n.（空心）小珠子( bead的名词复数 )；水珠；珠子项链

参考例句：

• a necklace of wooden beads 一条木珠项链
• Beads of perspiration stood out on his forehead. 他的前额上挂着汗珠。

7 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

8 missionaries   

n.传教士( missionary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Some missionaries came from England in the Qing Dynasty. 清朝时，从英国来了一些传教士。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The missionaries rebuked the natives for worshipping images. 传教士指责当地人崇拜偶像。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 missionary   

adj.教会的，传教(士)的；n.传教士

参考例句：

• She taught in a missionary school for a couple of years.她在一所教会学校教了两年书。
• I hope every member understands the value of missionary work. 我希望教友都了解传教工作的价值。

10 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

11 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 indifference   

n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎

参考例句：

• I was disappointed by his indifference more than somewhat.他的漠不关心使我很失望。
• He feigned indifference to criticism of his work.他假装毫不在意别人批评他的作品。

13 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

14 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

15 trauma   

n.外伤，精神创伤

参考例句：

• Counselling is helping him work through this trauma.心理辅导正帮助他面对痛苦。
• The phobia may have its root in a childhood trauma.恐惧症可能源于童年时期的创伤。