Pope Francis, pictured from behind in 2016. (Photo by Nacho Arteaga/Unsplash)
On April 1, 2022, the world witnessed a remarkable event. On that day Pope Francis addressed a group of Indigenous people with the words, “I am very sorry.”
‘As a settler, I know very little,’ says Kim Thiessen of Winnipeg. ‘But I am trying. . . . I have a burning desire to set things right and do what I can.’ (Photo by John Longhurst)
Like many Canadians, Winnipegger Kim Thiessen was devastated when she learned about the 215 unmarked graves of children at the Kamloops, B.C., residential school earlier this year.
“I didn’t know what to do with the sadness, despair and rage I felt,” says the 57-year-old mother and grandmother.
(flickr.com photo by GoToVan)
Following the discovery of the remains of 215 children on the grounds of the former Kamloops (B.C.) Indian Residential School by the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation, Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) laments the loss of these young lives.
There is a popular language arising in the church when it comes to justice work, that of “being an ally.” It means to align yourself with whoever your “other” is, so to love your neighbour and serve the Lord. But what happens when words are not enough, and when having only words of an ally can make injustice? What happens when being an ally is not enough?
