Cardinal Collins Statement RE Discovery at Kamloops Residential School

The following is a statment that has been issued by Cardinal Thomas Collins regarding the Discovery of Children's Remains at a former Kamloops Residential School.

Cardinal Collins Statement re Residential Schools - June 3, 2021.pdf

Statement from Cardinal Thomas Collins, Archbishop of Toronto
re Discovery of Children’s Remains at former Kamloops Residential School

June 3, 2021

“If one member suffers, all suffer together with it.” (1 Cor 12:26)
In recent days, the country has been shocked, saddened and angered by the discovery of the remains of
215 children in unmarked graves who attended a residential school in Kamloops, British Columbia. We
pray for the children who died in Kamloops and in residential schools throughout the country – they
must not be forgotten. We must also recognize the betrayal of trust by many Catholic leaders who were
responsible for operating residential schools, abandoning their obligation to care for young and innocent
children.

We all seek the truth and this tragic discovery provides yet another opportunity for us to learn more
about this dark chapter in our history and the painful journey experienced by so many of our Indigenous
brothers and sisters.

There is much more work to be done. Since the 1990’s, many of the Catholic entities responsible for the
operation of residential schools have apologized publicly for their actions and have journeyed together
with victims on the path to truth and reconciliation. This includes the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, the
religious order that operated the residential school in Kamloops, which over the weekend again
apologized for its role in the residential school system. Pope Benedict XVI also had the chance to meet
with Indigenous leaders in 2009 to personally express his sorrow and anguish.

These actions do not erase our history; they acknowledge our past, force us to face the consequences of
our behaviour and compel us to ensure that our sins are not repeated.

While the Archdiocese of Toronto did not operate residential schools, we join with the Indigenous
peoples, the Catholic community and Canadians from coast to coast to coast in a period of collective grief
for those who are physically, emotionally and spiritually wounded. This Sunday, I will offer Mass for
those who died or were abused at residential schools and for all those who deal with the
intergenerational trauma caused by this system. We must also continue to build on the tangible
initiatives present throughout the country, like the Our Lady of Guadalupe Circle, where bishops and
priests, women religious, laity and Indigenous peoples are committed to walking together on a path to
reconciliation.

As I have stated previously when speaking of abuse in the Church, the real scandal is when evil festers in
the darkness. Once in the open, evil can be rooted out. That must happen. Then new life can begin. Let us
journey together to find light through the darkness once again.

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, pray for us.

Thomas Collins
Archbishop of Toronto