“Education got us into this; education will get us out of this.” Though those words were first spoken and repeated often by Truth and Reconciliation Commission chair Sen. Murray Sinclair, they’ve become the personal motto of St. Mary’s University Elder in Residence Casey Eagle Speaker.

For educator Vanessa Pinto, the discovery of unmarked graves outside of residential schools has only strengthened her resolve to raise awareness of Indigenous history, culture and perspectives in the classroom.

STE.-ANNE-DE-BEAUPRÉ, Que. -- At the annual First Nations Sunday Mass, Cardinal Gérald Lacroix acknowledged that the revelations and realizations surrounding unmarked graves at former residential schools run by Catholic communities “have brought to light a very dark page in the history of our country. Decisions and behaviours, both by the government and the churches,” have contributed to the suffering “of our brothers and sisters.”

The shortest night of the year allows only a few hours of darkness in which to set churches on fire. It was time enough for two Catholic churches to be burned to the ground before dawn on June 21, 2021, National Indigenous Peoples Day.

As the country continues to wake up to the truth that there has been little or no reconciliation with Indigenous people, Catholics are also questioning their Church’s record.

To mark the 25th anniversary of National Indigenous Peoples Day in Canada on June 21, the Canadian Conference Catholic Bishops (CCCB) have released a prayer titled “Prayer for Tolerance, Forgiveness, Reconciliation.”

VANCOUVER -- Vancouver Archbishop J. Michael Miller reached out to residential school survivors in an interview with an Indigenous news network, apologizing for how representatives of the Church “betrayed your trust.”

Cardinal Thomas Collins said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s call for the Catholic Church to step up its responsibility for residential schools is “unhelpful” to the reconciliation process.

OTTAWA -- The Faith in the Declaration coalition is calling on the Senate to quickly approve a bill to give the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous peoples legal standing within Canadian law “as a critical step” towards reconciliation with Canada’s First Nations.

A sneak peak at a forthcoming guide to reconciliation between Indigenous Canadians and the rest of us has Toronto Catholic District School Board Indigenous education central resource teacher Frank Pio excited about the good it might do in high school classrooms.

Five years after the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) issued its final report, there is agreement that strides have been made in the journey towards healing with Canada’s Indigenous peoples.

Through a commission to paint murals at three Catholic schools, Indigenous artist Ryan Willert has been able to find his own healing and reconciliation with the Catholic community.

An Indigenous garden project underway in Toronto looks to bring hope and light to the province in the journey towards healing from the dark past of residential schools.

VANCOUVER -- For nearly 11 years, Deacon Rennie Nahanee has experienced extreme highs and lows as co-ordinator of First Nations Ministry for the Archdiocese of Vancouver.

It’s been a turbulent few months. Crowds blocking rail lines, protesters waving placards and RCMP officers barricading land are some of the dramatic images of discontent across Canada.