Many Indigenous people hoped Pope Francis would renounce the policy, which has been used to justify colonizing lands considered to be \u0027uninhabited\u0027
Earlier, Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller said the “gaps” in the pontiff’s apology cannot be ignored.
Criticisms of the apology include that Francis did not mention sexual abuse in his remarks, and he mentioned the “evil” committed by Christians, but not the Catholic Church as an institution.Article content The minister said that apology — delivered by Pope Benedict XVI through a letter — directly referred to the sexual abuses suffered by Irish children and the role played by the Catholic Church.Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak , which represents northern First Nations, said in a statement it was happy to see survivors receive an apology, but noted the omission of apologizing for sexual abuses.
“It was a bit surprising the Doctrine of Discovery was also not mentioned, but maybe it will be down the road,” MKO said in its statement.Sinclair has said the Pope’s words left a “deep hole” in recognizing the full role the Catholic Church played in operating residential schools by highlighting the actions of Christians, not the church as an institution.