By Deborah Gyapong
Canadian Catholic News

(L to R) Marie Wilson,Justice Murray Sinclair, and Chief Wilton Littlechild at a ceremony welcoming them as the new commissioners of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. (Anglican Journal)

"The time has come to speak up," said Jean in a speech delivered to Aboriginal leaders, elders, children, and representatives of the churches that ran Indian Residential Schools.

"The time has come for us to work together to listen and shine a light on the gaps in this memory, difficult though it may be," she added, noting the tragic history of forced assimilation of Canada's native peoples.

She recalled seeing photographs of children as young as five who were seized from their homes by government agents to attend the church-run schools.

The GG committed to acting as a witness of the TRC's journey. "When the present does not recognize the past, the future takes its revenge," she said.

"To those of you who would say, 'That's in the past, why don't they just get over it?' I would say this," said TRC Chair Justice Murray Sinclair, who was joined by fellow commissioners Chief Wilton Littlechild and Mary Wilson at the ceremony. "We and you are not out of that past yet."

"Our families were broken apart and must be rebuilt," said Sinclair. "Our families were broken apart and must be rebuilt. Our relationships have been damaged and must be restored. Our spirits have been stolen and must be returned. Our love for life was turned into fear and we must work together to learn to trust once again."

Gerard Pettipas, the Catholic Archbishop of Grouard-McLennan, participated in the ceremony as chair of the 50 Catholic entities -- dioceses and religious orders -- that ran residential schools and were signatories to the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement (IRSSA). The TRC was part of the $2.2 billion agreement.

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"It was a very good ceremony," said Pettipas in a telephone interview October 16. "I was particularly impressed that they had a number of elders and their grandchildren present."

He said he was struck by the fact that the grandchildren were about the same age as the former residential school students would have been when they attended the schools.

During the ceremony Sinclair announced that the first of seven national events called for in the IRSSA will take place in Winnipeg next spring. Other events will take place in Alberta, British Columbia, Northern Ontario, the Maritimes and Canada's North.

"I think this commission is certainly something that people have been waiting for for a long time," said Pettipas, noting the "misstep" when the TRC "fell apart" when its first chair and commissioners resigned last year.

"I found it very encouraging that Justice Sinclair wants to hear any story related to the residential schools," the archbishop said. "Up until now the stories sounded pretty bleak and bad."

Pettipas said Sinclair has indicated he also wants to hear from those who benefited from the schools and the relationships they built there.

"This is not just about repeating the same stories of abuse and woe or cultural deprivation that we all know are part of the Indian Residential Schools experience, but there's more, a wider picture," he said. "I think that's encouraging."

The TRC is expected to finish its work by 2014.

-- Courtesy of Canadian Catholic News. Please do not reprint without permission.

Related stories:

Truth and Reconciliation Commission to move west
Winnipeg will be the likely site for the authority, chaired by Justice Murray Sinclair, looking into the history of Canada's residential schools
Canwest News Service, August 28

Aboriginals, churches share a mutual respect
Christianity remains a major part of native peoples' lives, despite grim legacy, overlooked polls reveal
Douglas Todd, Vancouver Sun, August 28

Residential school probe to start in spring
The commission created to delve into the troubled history of Indian residential schools in Canada -- stalled by resignations, allegations of meddling and power struggles -- announced yesterday its plans to finally begin its cross-country, five-year journey.
CanWest News Service, October 16

October 22/2009