(Edmonton) Pope Francis has arrived at the Lac Ste. Anne, west of Edmonton, Alta., early Tuesday evening. He began his homily by saying hello in three native languages: Cree, Blackfoot and Nakota.
Updated yesterday at 9:35 p.m.
Several people in the church applauded him following his greetings. Pope Francis told the crowd that we are all traveling pilgrims.
The pope greeted hundreds of people as he was pushed in a wheelchair along a path on the shores of Lac Sainte-Anne.
According to the organizers of the event, he followed in the footsteps of those who made the annual pilgrimage to this site which is believed to have healing powers.
The Holy Father blessed the lake, then sat in silence gazing at the water. He then spent several minutes dousing the people lined up at the annual shrine with water from Lac Ste. Anne whom he had blessed.
The pontiff used a traditional wooden tool with a brush on the end and dipped it in a bowl of water as he was pushed around in a wheelchair.
Many in the crowd reached over a fence as he threw holy water in their direction.
Around 9 p.m., Pope Francis left the Lac Ste. Anna in Alberta.
Mass at Commonwealth Stadium
Earlier Tuesday morning, he delivered a sermon on the theme of childhood and family during a mass, in front of thousands of people gathered at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton.
The head of the Catholic Church notably spoke of the importance of parents and grandparents in the lives of children, and of the responsibility for these children to in turn assume their role as parents when the time comes.
“In the fog of oblivion that darkens our turbulent times, it is essential to cultivate our roots, to pray for and with our ancestors, to devote time to remembering and preserving their heritage,” Pope Francis stressed.
“This is how a family tree grows, this is how the future is built. »
The theme of the family was appropriate on this feast day of Saint Anne, grandmother of Jesus. This is a particularly important day for Indigenous Catholics.
Moreover, upon his arrival at the home of the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League, the pope offered his blessing to babies and young children who held out their hands to him.
Aboard his popemobile, the pope slowly circled the stadium floor, while thousands of people took their places in the stands.
As he had done the day before, on the occasion of the presentation of the official apologies of the Church to the First Nations for the role it played in the residential schools, the pope spoke in Spanish. A priest then translated his words into English.
Pam Kootnay of the Cree Nation of Enoch, not far from Edmonton, gave the first reading of the service. Members of the First Nations participated in different ways throughout the mass.
Around 65,000 free tickets were available for the event, but many seats went unsold, especially in the upper stands.
A team of 460 priests and 56 deacons also distributed Holy Communion at various locations in the stadium. The organizers hoped to complete the operation in about ten minutes.
Later in the day, the Holy Father will travel to Lac-Sainte-Anne, northwest of Edmonton, to take part in the community’s annual pilgrimage, which regularly welcomes tens of thousands of Indigenous participants.
The pope’s mass came the day after the Church’s official apology to the First Nations. An estimated 150,000 Aboriginal children were forced to attend residential schools, where neglect and physical and sexual abuse were common. More than 60% of these schools were run by the Catholic Church.
It was a particularly tough day for Patty Crofton of Sagkeeng First Nation, Manitoba, who still opted to show up at Commonwealth Stadium on Tuesday.
She said before the start of the mass that the apology brought back bad memories, since her parents attended boarding schools.
“I’m on my own on my journey to recovery,” she said.
Mme Crofton didn’t quite accept Pope’s apology, mostly because she didn’t feel he meant it. Above all, she denounced the fact that the pope’s speech was carefully prepared.
However, she believes that it is up to each person to decide for themselves whether the pope’s speech was enough.
“We have to talk about what happened to the next generations to make sure it never happens again,” said Ms.me Crofton.
On Wednesday, the pope will fly to Quebec, where he will continue his “penitential pilgrimage”. He will also visit Iqaluit on Friday afternoon, before returning to the Vatican.