By Sr. Doreen, SSJD
The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Canada was officially created in 2021, with the first observance taking place on September 30th of that year. This day is a direct response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action #80, which called for a statutory holiday to commemorate the residential school system and its impact on Indigenous peoples. Each year since then, September 30 marks the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. “The day honours the children who never returned home and Survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities. Public commemoration of the tragic and painful history and ongoing impacts of residential schools is a vital component of the reconciliation process.” (Canadian Government website)
“The Survivor’s Flag is an expression of remembrance, meant to honour residential school survivors and all the lives and communities impacted by the residential school system in Canada. Each element depicted on the flag was carefully selected by Survivors from across Canada. Inuit, Mi’kmaq, Atikamekw, Cree, Ojibway, Dakota, Mohawk, Dene, Nuu-chah-nulth, Secwepemc, Metis survivors brought the flag to life by sharing their thoughts, ideas, and lived experience to identify the important symbolism you see.” (National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation website)
During a conversation with Archbishop Fred Hiltz about the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, he shared with me the Survivors Flag and the symbolism from the NCTR website. It sparked my own reflections and provided a rich atmosphere to my pondering as I considered the actual symbols that made up the flag: The Family, The Children, The Seeds Below the Ground, Tree of Peace, Cedar Branch, Cosmic Symbolism, and then the individual symbols of The Métis Sash, The Eagle Feather, The Inuksuit.
As I looked at the Survivors Flag and the Symbols I began to think of the words ‘truth’ and ‘reconciliation’. We hear and use some words so often that they become familiar and often lose the depth of their significance. In a real sense I think that the words ‘truth’ and ‘reconciliation’ can often fall into this category of the familiar and forgotten. This caused me to ponder the word “truth’ ‘reconciliation ‘and I found myself remembering the words at the trial of Jesus before the crucifixion “What is truth?” asked by Pontius Pilate. He posed this question to Jesus during Jesus’ trial, as recorded in the Gospel of John 18:23. And then in John 8:32 “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” This is a day to spend time pondering these words ‘truth’ and ‘reconciliation.’
A great deal of thought went into the creation of this flag – symbols that embraced deep meaning. There is a great deal of truth telling in this flag and its symbols, a truth telling that is remembering and reaching for healing and a hope for the future. For all of us, perhaps this is an example of how important careful thought, and our own truth telling might be for a consideration of what gives rise to our own personal and communal symbols that we might want to include on a flag as we search for healing and a hope for the future. I believe that truth telling is one of the important ingredients of reconciliation – of bringing things together, both for an individual and for a community and the wider world that we live in. Remembering families broken apart, reaching for reuniting and healing; children lost but not forgotten; of nations united and brought to peace providing protection, comfort, and renewal; the importance of our sacred teachings; creations protection and direction; our pride and resilience; the Creators ever presence with us. All of these are woven together, with no single strand defining the whole story of our lives – this importance and urgency of truth telling is so for both the Survivors and those of us who are called ‘Settlers’. What might we add as our symbols, symbols that embrace deep meaning?
Remembering and celebrating our Canadian History involves the honest openness of truth telling – and encompasses our Indigenous peoples, especially on this day, when we ask for forgiveness and extend a hand desiring reconciliation and a commitment to work for equality and fullness of life, liberation. It also includes all those in the history of this country who have experienced or who today experience situations that limit fullness of life and freedom for them. We remember the Japanese and German Canadians during the second world war who were incarcerated in detention camps throughout the country, we join with Black Lives Matter, for LGBTQIA+ people, for all ethnic and religious groups that experience discrimination, and ask for forgiveness and extend a hand desiring reconciliation and a commitment to work for equality and fullness of life, liberation. On a National Day of Truth and Reconciliation there is much in our world today that needs truth telling and reconciliation – the wars and brokenness, the poverty and homelessness, the anger and hatred, the environmental crisis and climate change … all of this lack of fullness of life, all held within the Creators desire for love and reconciliation, wholeness of life, joy and peace. This wider global picture is not to diminish the public commemoration of the tragic and painful history and ongoing impacts of residential schools. It is but a pause in the wider global concern for the tragedies in our world today.
For us it is important to hold both the beauty and the sorrow in balance, as the Creator holds the whole world in loving hands. In Charles Mackesy’s book ‘the Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse’ it is the conversation between the Boy and the Horse that ring loud for me: “We have such a long way to go said the boy” “Yes”, said the horse, “but look at how far we have come.” We need to encourage one another, believe in one another, and have great faith in the potential of what we can do together. For you and I, Bishop Gordon Lights refrain in the hymn he wrote (#418 Common Praise hymn book, Anglican Church of Canada), gives us the challenge – “Draw the circle wide. Draw it wider still. Let this be our song, no one stands alone, standing side by side, draw the circle wide.”
When we can meet with our truth telling in openness and friendship there is the message of hope. I keep before me the words of a vision prayer that we use at the Convent that Mother Frances Joyce wrote, which I share using it not as for our community but in general for all of us who want to be involved in the ministry of reconciliation – a ministry that Jesus gave as a sacred responsibility to each of us.
“Almighty God, Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer, we thank you for all your deep love for us throughout our history, for the vision you have always had for us and for your love for each one of us in our personal journeys. We ask you to fill our lives with your love and grace, and to open our hearts to the vision you have for us. Help us never to forget that the past has been absorbed in your love and forgiveness; the present shines with the light of your presence; and the future beckons with your vision and plan for us. Keep us centered on gospel roots and values, refresh and sustain us as we go forward into the future, and accept our offering of praise and thanksgiving, through the grace and power and love of the Blessed Trinity. Amen”
One of the persons who contributed to the design of the flag presented this reflection wrote: “Creating a flag in honour of Survivors and those who did not return is very special. For me, the design symbolizes remembrance, hope for family, love and peace. It is a beautiful reminder of where we’ve been and who we are, as well as the goal of where we should be headed.” (copied from the website of the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation)