Lutherans respond to the legacy of the residential school system

Marieval Mission, Cowesses Indian Residential School in Elcapo Creek Valley, Saskatchewan, 1923.
G. C. Cowper, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

CANADA – The announcement that more than 700 unmarked graves have been found near the former Marieval Indian Residential School in Saskatchewan has brought fresh grief to the country, as people grapple with the legacy of the residential school system.

“The discovery of more unmarked graves near another residential school in Canada is heartbreaking,” said Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC) President Teuscher. “Let us draw near to our Indigenous brothers and sisters in this time, and lift them up in prayer to our heavenly Father. Lord, have mercy.”

“The discovery of more unmarked graves near another residential school in Canada is heartbreaking,” said Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC) President Teuscher. “Let us draw near to our Indigenous brothers and sisters in this time, and lift them up in prayer to our heavenly Father. Lord, have mercy.”

LCC released a statement on the legacy of the residential school system several weeks ago, after the tragic discovery of several hundred unmarked graves at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School, lamenting the tragic death of children and recognizing the devastation the residential school system has caused to indigenous families and communities across the country and encouraging care and prayer for our indigenous brothers and sisters.

A poem by LCC hymnwriter Rev. Kurt E. Reinhardt reflecting on the tragedy entitled “Their Stolen Children Have Been Found” was also recently published online here.

A few days before the announcement of the new discovery of graves in Saskatchewan, the Lutheran Association of Missionaries and Pilots (LAMP) also issued an open letter on the legacy of the Residential School System in light of the discovery in Kamloops. LAMP is a listed service organization of Lutheran Church–Canada.

“It is times like these that enforces the need that all of us become acutely sensitive to the indigenous culture and the conditions that have affected their lives, including the aftermath of the residential schools.”

“We at LAMP are grieved by the news of the death of these children and the damage that this situation and the entire residential school system has caused the Indigenous communities across Canada,” writes Rev. Dennis Ouellette, Interim Executive Director of LAMP. “”What makes this worse is that these heinous acts were done in the name of the Church and in the name of Jesus Christ. This is totally against the teachings of Jesus and the grace and mercy He demonstrated to so many people during His earthly walk.”

Interim Executive Director Ouellette goes on to note that during LAMP’s 52 years serving Indigenous communities, “LAMP’s staff, volunteer missionaries, and field missionaries have heard countless stories regarding Indigenous people’s experiences in the residential school system.”

“It is times like these that enforces the need that all of us become acutely sensitive to the indigenous culture and the conditions that have affected their lives, including the aftermath of the residential schools,” the letter continues. “In hearing the stories of the people, both those who experienced the residential system first-hand, and as people whom Jesus died and gave his life for, each of us must respond with the love and compassion that only our Savior Jesus can provide.”

LAMP’s full letter can be read on their Facebook Page Here:

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