'We need to talk about that hurt': Inside a healing tent in Quebec City
With the Pope en route to Quebec City, Indigenous support workers are offering their services to those in need.
Four healing tents are pitched on the Plains of Abraham in Quebec's capital, where Pope Francis is scheduled to visit early Wednesday evening.
70-year-old Delbert Sampson, a counsellor with Corrections Canada, is one of numerous healers stationed there.
Himself a residential school survivor, he uses traditional Indigenous healing practices to help other survivors work through their trauma -- trauma that is all too often shaped by violence, he explained.
"A lot of people are ashamed to talk about it, especially if it's been sexual abuse," he told CTV News. "And it's even [harder] for men to talk about this."
He said the healing practices involve deeply exploring a person's "mental, emotional, physical and spiritual" state.
"We need to talk about that hurt and that pain we have. This is where we're able to help ourselves," he explained.
Four healing tents are stationed at the Plains of Abraham in Quebec City, offering services in French, English and numerous Indigenous languages. (CTV News / Daniel Rowe)
Sampson attended the Kamloops Indian Residential School in B.C. for seven years.
He is one of countless survivors the Pope is apologizing to on behalf of the Catholic Church during his visit to Canada.
"I am here because the first step of my penitential pilgrimage among you is that of again asking forgiveness, of telling you once more that I am deeply sorry," the Pope said in his official apology on Monday. "Sorry for the ways in which, regrettably, many Christians supported the colonizing mentality of the powers that oppressed the Indigenous peoples. I am sorry."
But for Sampson, this apology could go further.
He proposed the Pope partake in Indigenous spiritual practices, just as Indigenous children partook in Catholicism, usually not by choice.
"Come sit with me in a sweat lodge and talk to me in a sweat lodge," Sampson said. "Then I would really understand, I would really see that you're making an effort."
"That would be a real apology."
The Pope's Quebec City schedule has been pushed back for a few hours due to flight delays.
He is set to reach the Citadelle de Quebec at 4:40 p.m. and will tour the Plains of Abraham at 6:15 p.m.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Trudeau promises $1B in loans for child-care providers to expand care centres
The federal government is launching a new loan program to help child-care providers in Canada expand their spaces, and will be extending further student loan forgiveness and training options for early childhood educators, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Thursday.
Spring allergy season has begun. Where is it worse in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
N.B. man wins $64 million from Lotto 6/49
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
'Nonsense:' Doug Ford slams lawsuits filed by Ontario school boards against social media platforms
Premier Doug Ford says that lawsuits launched by four Ontario school boards against a trio of social media platforms are “nonsense” and risk becoming a distraction to the work that really matters.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
Multiple bridges in Calgary shut down for police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
King Charles calls for acts of friendship in first public remarks since Kate's cancer diagnosis
King Charles III gave public remarks for Maundy Thursday, addressing the importance of acts of friendship, following his and Catherine, Princess of Wales’ cancer diagnoses.