Repentance and Reconciliation

Speaker: Ray Aldred

I propose that under the Canadian colonial enterprise, salvation for Indigenous people was defined as becoming Western and civilized. Conversion for Indigenous people meant repenting of Indigenous identity, putting it off and becoming Western, or enfranchised into Canadian society. Conversely, contextual Cree theology would reinterpret

embracing of the Creator's fulfillment of all that our traditional spirituality longed for. It is a repentance of turning to Christ by embracing a God given Indigenous identity of becoming a true human being. This reinterpretation of repentance is also sufficient for non-Indigenous as they embrace their own responsibility through repentance moving toward a reconciliation that could be described using the principles of restorative justice: telling the truth or complete disclosure, listening with heart and not just the intellect; and engaging in shared plan built upon a returning to the ongoing historical Indigenous treaty process.

*This is a recording of a session from our 2021 InspirED Convention