(Residential school survivor Evelyn Korkmaz, left, Senator Murray Sinclair, and NDP MP Romeo Saganash at a news conference in Ottawa)
Annette FrancisAPTN Reporter Annette Francis gives us more from the news conference in Ottawa
Sinclair was accompanied by NDP-MPs Charlie Angus and Romeo Saganash (Abitibi-Baie-James-Nunavik-Eeyou), who bashed the bishops’ behaviour.
“I am disgusted,” said Saganash, a Cree politician from Quebec who survived 10 years in residential school.
“To state ‘the Catholic church as a whole in Canada was not associated with the residential schools’ pushes this church towards very irresponsible, historical, revisionism,” added Angus (Timmins-James Bay), a Catholic.
Sen. Murray Sinclair, who chaired the TRC, said it was sad to see the church try and distance itself from the issue now.
“They’re not taking responsibility and that’s a shame,” he said.
It took survivor Evelyn Korkmaz, who shared the stage with the politicians, to clarify the subject.
“The church has acknowledged wrongdoing,” she said. “So all we’re asking for is a verbal apology.”
Korkmaz attended notorious St. Anne’s residential school in Angus’s riding, whose survivors are battling Ottawa for the same compensation offered other survivors.
Angus, who has been championing their fight, said the church has to apologize and noted he was “distressed” Canadian bishops weren’t insisting he do that.
But Gagnon defended the head of the church.
“I agree with the way the Pope is handling this in waiting for an opportune time,” he said.
“He has been invited to Canada from the prime minister, from three of our presidents of the Catholic conference of bishops of Canada…His response had to do with Call to Action No. 58 and its rather strict confines.”
Pope Francis has apologized to Indigenous peoples in Bolivia for the impact of colonialism and said sorry to survivors of priestly sexual abuse in Ireland.
“We have a track record with this Pope who is not afraid to confront the hard issues,” Gagnon added.
Was this not an apology ? Perhaps Phil Fontaine can step up and explain how his words were taken so out of context if this indeed was not an apology?
https://www.archbalt.org/pope-expresses-sorrow-for-suffering-of-canadian-aboriginal-students/
Was this not an apology ? Perhaps Phil Fontaine can step up and explain how his words were taken so out of context if this indeed was not an apology?
https://www.archbalt.org/pope-expresses-sorrow-for-suffering-of-canadian-aboriginal-students/
Man With A Name, what would you say if a President either was ignorant of a major issue overseas or disregarded informed opinion from his ambassadors? You would say that such a man either was an ignoramus or woefully irresponsible. Well, a Pope is the Roman Catholic equivalent of a President, and a nuncio is the equivalent of an ambassador. You cannot tell me that using Catholic churches as refugee centers for Muslims was not a serious issue. If the nuncio failed to contact his superiors about the situation or lied about it, then the nuncio was at fault. If the nuncio remained in his position afterward, that”s the Pope”s fault. If the Pope ignored the situation despite evidence that could not be ignored, then that”s the Pope”s fault. In any event, the buck stops with Benedict, just like the buck stopped with Harry Truman. I”m tired of people making excuses for Benedict (or any other Pope) because of the persona he projects, the office he holds or the theology he embodies. I truly believe that history will judge Benedict as one of the most ineffective Popes ever, especially in confronting seriously issues plaguing the Catholic Church.
Man With A Name, what would you say if a President either was ignorant of a major issue overseas or disregarded informed opinion from his ambassadors? You would say that such a man either was an ignoramus or woefully irresponsible. Well, a Pope is the Roman Catholic equivalent of a President, and a nuncio is the equivalent of an ambassador. You cannot tell me that using Catholic churches as refugee centers for Muslims was not a serious issue. If the nuncio failed to contact his superiors about the situation or lied about it, then the nuncio was at fault. If the nuncio remained in his position afterward, that”s the Pope”s fault. If the Pope ignored the situation despite evidence that could not be ignored, then that”s the Pope”s fault. In any event, the buck stops with Benedict, just like the buck stopped with Harry Truman. I”m tired of people making excuses for Benedict (or any other Pope) because of the persona he projects, the office he holds or the theology he embodies. I truly believe that history will judge Benedict as one of the most ineffective Popes ever, especially in confronting seriously issues plaguing the Catholic Church.
This is the very behaviour and atheist approach shown by persons who wear a black robe. Their act of no transparency defys why Jesus established the apostles. The astrocities faced by young children under the Roman Catholic Church Empire by their very priesthood subjects must be corrected. Why does one Pope feel at a grave loss to apologize for his own clergy of priests who committed crimes against children? The Pope must put up a resistance approach against pedophilia. He must fight against Evil unless the Pope cannot resist his own temptous faith! Give the empowerment of civil rights back to the People who have suffered many years of Crimes against Humanity! If the Pope does not wish to address the Action protocols then the Pope can and should relieve himself of his duties regarding failure to protect the rights of Human Intetests! Watch the children of the World today! They still feel burdened and feel the silence of horrendous crimes which continue to plight children across these vast nations of humanity! Stand up and be proud Pope defy the odds.
“We like to keep a separation between church and state in terms of Parliament directing specific actions,” she said. “And I think we also believe that that’s an important distinction to keep, which the other parties don’t believe.”
?????
How can “she” claim to have ‘separation between church and state’ when the doctrine of discovery is still the law of the land today? Even though the Holy See abrogated it in 1537 see here https://aila.ngo/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Holy-See.pdf Is this not a miracle of resurrection akin to Jesus?
This is the very behaviour and atheist approach shown by persons who wear a black robe. Their act of no transparency defys why Jesus established the apostles. The astrocities faced by young children under the Roman Catholic Church Empire by their very priesthood subjects must be corrected. Why does one Pope feel at a grave loss to apologize for his own clergy of priests who committed crimes against children? The Pope must put up a resistance approach against pedophilia. He must fight against Evil unless the Pope cannot resist his own temptous faith! Give the empowerment of civil rights back to the People who have suffered many years of Crimes against Humanity! If the Pope does not wish to address the Action protocols then the Pope can and should relieve himself of his duties regarding failure to protect the rights of Human Intetests! Watch the children of the World today! They still feel burdened and feel the silence of horrendous crimes which continue to plight children across these vast nations of humanity! Stand up and be proud Pope defy the odds.
“We like to keep a separation between church and state in terms of Parliament directing specific actions,” she said. “And I think we also believe that that’s an important distinction to keep, which the other parties don’t believe.”
?????
How can “she” claim to have ‘separation between church and state’ when the doctrine of discovery is still the law of the land today? Even though the Holy See abrogated it in 1537 see here https://aila.ngo/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Holy-See.pdf Is this not a miracle of resurrection akin to Jesus?