Indigenous Relations
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Together towards Reconciliation
The Diocese of Saint John is committed to working with Indigenous Leadership and Peoples towards healing and reconciliation, especially those First Nations communities and others that are part of our diocese: Woodstock (Wotstak) First Nation, Esgenoôpetitj First Nation, Kingsclear (Pilick) First Nation, Metepenagiak Mi'kmaq First Nation, Eel Ground (Natoaganeg) First Nation, St. Mary's (Sitansisk) First Nation, and Oromocto (Welamukotuk) First Nation.
Evangelization continues to be our common mission. In the 16th century, Spanish missionaries were sent to the new world to spread the Gospel of Jesus. Though evangelization was not a priority for many of the Spanish settlers (who were driven by military and economic purposes) there were voices in the wilderness who, in the face of growing opposition, asserted the dignity and humanity of the Indigenous Peoples as part of God's creation (including Dominican Priests Fray Montesinos and Bartolomé de Las Casas). As the intellectual community in Spain discussed the relationship of their country and the Indigenous Peoples, theologian Francesco de Vitoria was inspired to travel to Rome to petition Pope Paul III on behalf of the Indigenous Peoples. As a result, Pope Paul III issued the Papal Bull Sublimus Deus in 1537, which upheld the humanity, dignity, and land rights of the Indigenous Peoples.
Following in the footsteps of these voices in the wilderness we renew our commitment to healing and reconciliation, sharing the joy of the Gospel and building "a civilization of truth and love, to the praise and glory of God,
the Creator and lover of life." (Saint John Paul II, Prayer for Life, March 1995)
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Our Lady of Guadalupe
Our Lady of Guadalupe holds great significance to Indigenous Peoples. Her apparition to Saint Juan Diego as an Indigenous woman inspired the conversion of millions of Indigenous Peoples to the Catholic faith within ten years of this miracle. Between December 9-12, 1531, Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared to Saint Juan Diego in Mexico City, and informed him that she would look after the grieving Indigenous Peoples who faced persecution and slavery from the military. Juan Diego shared this with Bishop Juan Zumarraga, the Bishop of Mexico, who requested a sign that he had truly met the Mother of God. During an apparition on the morning of December 12, 1531, Our Lady of Guadalupe sent Castilian roses and instructed Juan Diego to bring these back to the bishop as confirmation, as these flowers could not bloom in the winter. Juan carried the roses on his tilma, and when he presented them to the bishop, miraculously the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared on his tilma. Juan Diego's tilma with the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe still exists today, and is housed at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City. It remains the only face of the Mother of Jesus given directly to the people of God in the whole world.
We recognize the strength and resiliency of Indigenous Peoples in the face of adversity. And we acknowlege with great sadness the pain and harm they have suffered due to colonialism. Entrusting ourselves to the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, we ask our Creator to show us the way to healing, forgiveness, reconciliation and a renewed fellowship.
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Residential Schools Background
Statements and Initiatives
Prayers
Links and Resources
Indigenous Reconciliation Fund
"We, who, though unworthy, exercise on earth the power of our Lord and seek with all our might to bring those sheep of His flock who are outside into the fold committed to our charge, consider, however, that the Indians are truly men and that they are not only capable of understanding the Catholic Faith but, according to our information, they desire exceedingly to receive it. Desiring to provide ample remedy for these evils, We define and declare by these Our letters, or by any translation thereof signed by any notary public and sealed with the seal of any ecclesiastical dignitary, to which the same credit shall be given as to the originals, that, notwithstanding whatever may have been or may be said to the contrary, the said Indians and all other people who may later be discovered by Christians, are by no means to be deprived of their liberty or the possession of their property, even though they be outside the faith of Jesus Christ; and that they may and should, freely and legitimately, enjoy their liberty and the possession of their property; nor should they be in any way enslaved." (Pope Paul III, Sublimus Deus, 1537)
"Through inculturation the Church makes the Gospel incarnate in different cultures and at the same time introduces peoples, together with their cultures, into her own community. She transmits to them her own values, at the same time taking the good elements that already exist in them and renewing them from within. Through inculturation the Church, for her part, becomes a more intelligible sign of what she is, and a more effective instrument of mission."
(Pope John Paul II, Remptoris Missio, 1990)
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