Panel: ECCLESIAL INEQUALITIES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN A SYNODAL CHURCH



65.5 - LESSONS FROM WALKING TOGETHER WITH INDIGENOUS PEOPLES IN CANADA: LISTENING AND ENCOUNTER AS KENOTIC STARTING POINTS ON THE PATH TOWARDS RECONCILIATION

AUTHORS:
Paparella J. (KU Leuven ~ Leuven ~ Belgium)
Text:
"Walking Together" was the theme of Pope Francis' penitential pilgrimage with Indigenous peoples in Canada in 2022, as he apologized on Canadian soil in the wake of the residential school system. Indeed, synodality offers a new paradigm for understanding and living out the Church's ongoing journey with Indigenous on the path of truth and reconciliation. In Canada, this path has been defined in terms of relationship, pointing to the approach of restorative justice. Apologies are an integral part of this process, but they are not the final destination. Reflecting on experiences with Indigenous persons, the two-fold starting point of listening and encounter emerges as a fundamental condition for walking together towards more just relationships. This requires, on the part of the Church and non-Indigenous, a disposition of kenosis to receive the truth about the injustices that mark the past and present in order to take steps forward in the hope of reconciliation.