We received gratefully the recent announcement of the upcoming visit of First Nations, Inuit and Metis delegations with Our Holy Father Pope Francis at the Vatican. The Canadian Catholic Bishops, Assembly of First Nations, Métis National Council, and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami has announced that the delegation, originally planned for December 2021, is now scheduled to take place from March 28 to April 1, 2022. As co-chairs of the Our Lady of Guadalupe Circle (Circle), we encourage the whole faith community to embrace this historic moment and prepare to stand in prayerful solidarity with all of those who will be meeting with the Holy Father so that this will be a true encounter on our journey toward reconciliation. On behalf of the Circle, we are pleased to attach two initiatives to support you:
- A prayer card which contains a prayer for the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe. You are invited to download this card and share it with your own organization or network.
- An invitation from the Circle to join in a Sacred Fire to be held across the land on the opening day of the Encounter March 28. Please review it and consider gathering personally with your parish, community, organization, or network to link to this vigil.
We will pray to Our Lady of Guadalupe for her to intercede with her Son to shower abundant graces among and between us, for the conversion and healing of hearts, as we continue our journey of truth and reconciliation.
Tom Dearhouse
Co-chair
Colleen Martin
Co-chair
In addition, we invite everyone to read the educational resources for the Indigenous Delegation to the Vatican from March 28 to April 1, 2022. These resources will assist the Catholic faithful in learning more about the history of Indigenous People and their relationship with the Catholic Church.