Friday of the Second Week of Lent
March 10th, 2023
Call to Action: 61
61. We call upon church parties to the Settlement Agreement, in collaboration with Survivors and representatives of Aboriginal organizations, to establish permanent funding to Aboriginal people for:
i. Community-controlled healing and reconciliation projects.
ii. Community-controlled culture- and language-revitalization projects.
iii. Community-controlled education and relationship-building projects.
iv. Regional dialogues for Indigenous spiritual leaders and youth to discuss Indigenous spirituality,
self-determination, and reconciliation.
Suggestions for Almsgiving
The 2023 Lenten Calendar is a project of CTA's Indigenous Solidarity Collective, a working group that addresses the Catholic Church's historical and current role in colonialization. To support more projects from working groups like this one, please consider making a contribution!
Friday, Mar. 10, 2023
Church Apologies and Reconciliation
Call To Action's 2023 Lenten Calendar is a collaboration between the Indigenous Solidarity Collective and Anti-Racism Team (ART). This calendar provides more than 40 days of prayer and study to lead members into action and solidarity with Indigenous communities. For holy days and Sundays during Lent, we'll publish a reflection from an ART or Indigenous Solidarity Collective member on why we're committed to undoing racism and Indigenous oppression in our own communities and biases and what it means to do this work as Catholics. Following each meditation or reflection, we will feature a call to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.
Reconciliation can be an arduous process. It often involves one or more parties relinquishing long-held control so that trust can be established and true bridge-building can take place. Throughout this process, as we work towards repair, it is important that we center the voices of those most affected by broken and oppressive systems, and that we are working on their timeline, not ours.
Healthy collaboration with and investment in Indigenous communities helps ensure that community efforts are culturally appropriate, and the right to self-determination is respected and protected. We must do our best to not co-opt these projects and make them our own, even if we are acting with the best intentions. Good intentions can have negative impact if we are not following the leadership of those whom we are wanting to be in right relationship with.
May we strive to create fertile ground for Indigenous communities to thrive on their own terms. Every step towards liberation and reconciliation for those whom we have historically and currently marginalize and disenfranchise is a step towards wholeness for us all.
—Meditation by Indigenous Solidarity Collective member Revalon Wesson
As part of your Lenten practice, please consider donating to one or more of the
following organizations: