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An invitation to prayer on June 13, 2010

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Published on 
June 3, 2010

The first national consultation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) of Canada will take place at The Forks in Winnipeg, Man., from June 16 to 19, 2010. Church members across Canada are asked to set aside Sunday, June 13, 2010, to pray for the TRC and its work. New liturgical resources are now available for download.

Specifically, Canadian Anglicans are asked to pray

  • For survivors of Indian Residential Schools, for commissioners, speakers, and all Canadians, that we may speak, hear, and act upon the truth, and that we as individuals and as a nation may meet the hope of a new beginning.

About the TRC and the Winnipeg consultation
The TRC is part of a comprehensive response to the legacy of Indian Residential Schools as set out in the Residential Schools’ Settlement Agreement reached in May 2006. The commission is mandated to look at activities within residential schools, as well as the impacts of the schools’ stated aim to assimilate Aboriginal children.

The national consultation in Winnipeg will be an opportunity for survivors of residential schools, their families and communities, for church members, people of faith, and other concerned Canadians to gather for truth telling, learning and reflection, artistic expression, remembering and commemorating, healing, repenting, and reconciling.

Suggested Resources for Prayer and Reflection
The new liturgical resources include these resources for use on June 13:

  • Call to Reflection
  • Covenant Collect
  • Prayer for a New Beginning
  • Homily/Notes on the Lectionary Readings of the Day
  • Quotes for Meditations or Sermons
  • Circle of Prayer
  • Prayer of Lamentation-Litany of the Dispossessed
  • Eucharistic Prayer

Additional Resources

Apologies and Confessions

Acknowledging the land and God’s creation

This acknowledgement is crafted in light of the Principles of Reconciliation by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, as we seek to live faithfully in Christ and in right relationship with all. 

We give thanks to the Creator for this land, its waters, forests and all living beings, and for the abiding presence of Christ among us. From coast to coast to coast, these have been cared for and nurtured by First Nations, Inuit and Métis through countless generations. 

We honour the enduring relationship Indigenous Peoples have cultivated with these lands and waters, and the treaties and agreements that reflect these sacred bonds. We acknowledge the harms caused by colonial expansion, through frameworks like the Doctrine of Discovery and structures like the residential school system. We recognize our past failures as a Church, including disruption of connections to the land and suppression of Indigenous spiritualities. 

Guided by the gospel of Jesus Christ, we confess our need for healing. We commit ourselves to seeking truth, pursuing reconciliation and nurturing harmony with all creation. We place our trust in Christ, through whom all things are reconciled to God. 

May God strengthen us to live faithfully as stewards of the Earth. Let us walk in love, justice and reconciliation, joining in God’s work to restore all creation.