Trudeau arrives at Vatican, looking for formal apology for residential schools

By Joanna Smith
CBC News
May 29, 2017

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/trudeau-pope-vatican-1.4135553

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, center, and his wife Sophie Gregoire-Trudeau, left, meet Pope Francis on the occasion of their private audience, at the Vatican today. Photo by Ettore Ferrari

Trudeau, left, takes a tour of Amatrice, the central Italian town brought to rubble by an August earthquake that killed nearly 300 people, on Sunday. Photo by Emiliano Grillotti

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has had a private visit with Pope Francis at the Vatican.

It's unclear what was said in the meeting, which lasted more than 30 minutes, but Trudeau was expected to discuss reconciliation with indigenous peoples, religious diversity and climate change.

The prime minister has given the Pope a rare set of Jesuit Relations books, which have become an important source detailing the beginnings of Canada.

Trudeau also presented Pope Francis with a Montagnais-French dictionary written by a French Jesuit in the 17th century.

In return, the Pope gave the prime minister a gold medal marking the fourth year of his pontificate, an autographed copy of his message for World Peace Day and three papal letters about family, environment and evangelism.​

Trudeau was expected to ask the pontiff to issue a formal apology in Canada for the role of the Catholic Church in the residential school system.

Former prime minister Stephen Harper, who issued a residential schools apology on behalf of the Canadian government in 2008, did not raise the issue directly during a 10-minute audience with Pope Francis two years ago. Harper did mention the report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

In 2009, the previous pope, Benedict XVI, did express "sorrow" on behalf of the Catholic Church for the "deplorable conduct" by some members of the church in their treatment of indigenous children in residential schools.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission report said this did not go far enough, especially since it was not made in public.

On Sunday, Trudeau appealed to the heart of the country by visiting Amatrice, a tiny town still struggling to recover from a devastating earthquake.

"It's an opportunity to share our thoughts, our condolences, our sympathies, but also demonstrate our resolve to accompany our friends in this difficult time," Trudeau said Sunday as he stood below a clock tower, the only structure standing on a street lined with rubble.

That clock is stopped at 3:36 — the time in the morning the 6.2-magnitude quake hit the area in central Italy about 100 kilometres northeast of Rome on August 24, 2016. Some 300 people were killed, including one Canadian.

Many of them were children, and signs of their presence, including an illustrated cloth book and a inflatable pool toy, could be seen among the rocks, dust and other rubble piled high.

Efforts to rebuild the town, which includes many heritage buildings from medieval times, have been moving slowly.

The Italian-Canadian community has been trying to bring more attention to that fact, raising money to help pay for things like medical vehicles needed to navigate the mountainous terrain.