Pope Francis said on Sunday he was saddened by the discovery of the remains of 215 children at a former Catholic school for indigenous Canadian students and called for the rights and traditions of indigenous peoples to be respected.
He urged Canadian and Catholic religious leaders to "work together" to shed light on the findings and seek reconciliation and treatment. Francis said he felt close to "Canadians, who have been traumatized by this shocking news".
Addressing visitors and visitors to St. Peter's Square, he paused, however, with a direct apology from many Canadians to the Catholic Church for its role in residential schools, which operated between 1831 and 1996 and were owned by a number of Christian religions on behalf of the state.
The discovery of last month's remains of children at Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia, which closed in 1978, has opened up old wounds and fueled anger in Canada over a lack of information and accountability. Learn more
The residential school system forcibly separated an estimated 150,000 children from their homes. Many were abused, raped and malnourished in what the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2015 called "cultural extermination".
Francis spoke two days after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the Catholic Church should play its part in governing many schools.
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