A few months back when the Indigenous delegation went to Rome, delegates invited the Holy Father to come to the Lac Ste Anne Pilgrimage, which has great spiritual significance in the lives of indigenous peoples, drawing pilgrims especially from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, B.C., and the North.
Elders and chiefs invited him hoping that the Holy Father’s attendance could serve as an ideal venue for his pilgrimage of healing and reconciliation.
Father Garry Laboucane OMI, who has served the Indigenous community for decades, and Audrey Poitras, President of the Metis Nation of Alberta, are excited and also aware that this visit has a profound role in reconciliation, not just locally, but for the entire province and country. They together gratefully hope for forgiveness, healing and a new beginning.
Having the pope attend will have great potential for healing; the model shown by the pilgrimage can benefit all people across Canada, with the example of the Holy Spirit healing us as we celebrate together in unity.