As news spread of the Pope’s death, reactions among Indigenous Peoples reflected the church’s complicated history, woven with a mix of gratitude and unresolved pain.
Natan Obed, the president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, a national organization that represents 70,000 Inuit in Canada, met with the Pope four times in 2022 and called the apology “deeply meaningful.”
But he also cited a “missed opportunity.” Mr. Obed had asked the Pope to intervene personally in the case of Johannes Rivoire, a former Oblate priest living in France, charged with sexual assault from his time working in Canada. He pressed the Pope to help send him to stand trial in Canada. Mr. Rivoire died in France last year.
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Globe & Mail
Publication Date
April 21, 2025
