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Guelph's Catholics being asked to contribute directly to Indigenous Reconciliation fund

Sunday will see a collection at every Diocese of Hamilton church
Reconciliation

The Diocese of Hamilton – which includes the Catholic churches in the Guelph area – is asking parishioners to donate to its Indigenous Reconciliation Fund.

For the last several months the diocese has been slowly rolling out the initiative, with this coming Sunday being the start of having a collection in a pew at every Parish across the diocese.

Donations will be on top of $4 million the diocese has committed to the $30-million national Indigenous Reconciliation Fund.

Of the regional $4-million commitment, $2.1 million will be allocated through partnerships within the Diocese of Hamilton, while $1.9 million will support initiatives in other dioceses/communities of need across the country, the diocese says.

“For the Catholic community it’s really important for us to respond whenever there is suffering, and there is certainly a lot of hurt and suffering in this, and the church played a role in this and the church wants to play a really significant role in the avenues of healing and reconciliation as well,” said Francis Doyle vice-chancellor of temporal affairs.

Parishioners across the diocese will be invited to support the initiative through various means in the coming years.

This fund, which is part of a Canada-wide commitment of $30-million commitment, will support Indigenous-led initiatives of healing and reconciliation. 

Both the diocese and the national fund will be overseen by a board that includes Indigenous members.

“The committee will be at least comprised of 50 per cent at least Indigenous membership,” said Doyle. “Really, we’re going to look at that to identify where the most pressing needs are to support, but we do know that all of the priorities that will be supported – while it will be Indigenous folks populating this – will all support the planks in Action 61 from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.” 

While the Diocese of Hamilton ran no residential schools, the group said it takes seriously its part in supporting the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) effort to promote healing and reconciliation with our Indigenous sisters and brothers.

Doyle said despite the Diocese of Hamilton never having played a role in these residential schools, it is vital for them to acknowledge the role the Catholic church played and also play a role in the reconciliation process.

“The one thing we’re pretty proud of is we’re not only going to support things here locally, but we also want to help support communities where they may not have resources,” said Doyle.

The funds will be managed with financial measures in place to ensure transparency.


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Daniel Caudle

About the Author: Daniel Caudle

Daniel Caudle is a journalist who covers Guelph and area
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