When the news came to the world about the cemetery in Kamloops Residential School this was no surprise to me as an Indigenous person. This reaction was not because I’m cynical and think the worst of people, but because it’s common knowledge amongst our people and residential school survivor stories and testimonies that this was the case. In general, the overall 500-year history of colonialism in Canada, is filled with many things that are beyond the scope of this article. Just like referring to all the atrocities in Rwanda, Nazi Germany and Cambodia are beyond the scope of any single article or column.
When this news hit the media, it did remind me of the many unfortunate events that have taken place in Canada. This news does have the potential to cause more strife between the indigenous community and the non-Indigenous community in Canada. Yet, it also has the potential to open up more dialogue about what true reconciliation looks like. Not just reconciliation for future generations, but what does that process look like right now?
As a believer in Jesus and an Indigenous man who comes from the generation called the Sixties Scoop. My parents, uncles and aunts came from the residential school generation. I have many non-Indigenous family and friends. I have no ill will towards any people in Canada or Europe. The love of Jesus has transformed my life, and so there is no issue, or part of history that will separate me from the love of God, that will sperate me from forgiveness, mercy and grace.
Discovering a mass grave site in Kamloops is sure to lead to more discoveries across Canada, and it is a reminder of great trauma for many Indigenous people. The closer they are to the generation that went to residential school, the more intense the intergenerational trauma is. Many Indigenous People have experienced intergenerational trauma and the subject matter is very complex.
Yet, with Jesus in our lives, the more we will experience forgiveness and the ability to move on. For many Indigenous people, the residential school system is one of the largest markers in history that reminds us of the last 500 years of a dominating traumatic and complicated history. I have experienced the forgiveness that only comes from Jesus, but many of my people have not. That’s the tragedy and dilemma.
The best way to move forward is to listen to each other. Not just with a polite, “ok yes; is that right?” Rather we must learn to listen to each other, seeing the other person as made in the image of God. This is easier said than done, but it is a theological truth that applies to every person on the face of this earth. Conversations and interactions that take place with this in mind will be more fruitful and productive.
A friend of mine reminded me today, of the terms “Truth” and “Reconciliation,” that have become a common go-to phrase. He reminded me that it’s not only truth and reconciliation, but as believers it needs to go to its biblical end, which also involves forgiveness. How that forgiveness is lived out as Indigenous people and how better listening skills unfold as non-Indigenous people is totally dependent on each individual.
When some people heard the news of the cemetery at the Kamloops Residential School, they might have been totally shocked and in disbelief, and not sure what do to with those emotions. Other people like myself, were not shocked or surprised, but yet I still had to make a choice as to how to react to this event within our Canadian history. I chose to acknowledge the truth of the situation, but then press into Jesus as the author and finisher of my faith. I won’t allow this discovery to take away my joy and the ministry God has given me.
Although this is how I’ve reacted to this news, it does have the potential of fracturing relationships between Indigenous People and non-Indigenous People. At the same time so does gender equality, wearing masks, getting the vaccine, or whether to change the name of the Edmonton football club. We all have a choice to make in how we respond to any injustices or sufferings in our lives. Jesus knew the ultimate extent of what it meant to suffer, yet on the cross he said, “Forgive them for they know not what they are doing.” (Luke 23: 34) This is how I have chosen to react. Now the choice is up to you.
Parry Stelter is a Cree and Métis member of Alexander First Nation which is part of Treaty Six Territory. He’s a Chaplain at the Salvation Army and a doctoral candidate in contextu-al leadership at Providence University.
Leave a Reply