The postponed December meeting between Indigenous leaders, the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Pope Francis to discuss the church’s role in Residential Schools will now take place this spring, the groups announced yesterday.
The originally planned Dec. 17-20 trip to Italy was cancelled due to the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant.
“The Holy Father is now scheduled to meet with individual Indigenous delegations the week of March 28, 2022,” Tuesday’s press release reads. “A final audience with all participants will take place on Friday, April 1, 2022.”
The meeting is meant to “foster meaningful encounters of dialogue and healing” for the Catholic Church’s role in its more than 100-year operation of Indian Residential Schools for Indigenous, First Nations, Métis and Inuit youth in Canada.
