Over the past three years, OYM’s congregation has undertaken a number of initiatives aimed at improving our relations with First Nations people in both urban and rural settings in Ontario. To gain a better understanding and appreciation of our aboriginal neighbours, a First Peoples tribute service was conducted in June, 2007. Many of the prayers and hymns for this service were drawn from First Nations elders. We were delighted by the presence of Elizabeth Pike, of the Toronto Urban Native Ministry, as well as three generations of an aboriginal family who gifted us with their grace, energy and warmth. A link is provided below to a copy of Reverend Chris’ message The Peaceful Kingdom presented on this occasion [view/download here »]. It has much to offer us on developing relationships of friendship with God – The Great Creator, with His Creation here on Mother Earth and beyond, and with one another.

In the summer of that year, OYM was alerted to a devastating fire in the remote Northern Ontario aboriginal community of Pikangikum. The fire destroyed the school, a facility that was central to the people’s efforts to prepare its youth for a positive and productive way of life. When asked what OYM could do to help, the Pikangikum School Board advised that helping to replace school books would be an important thing for us to do. Over the ensuing months, OYM responded with a major fund raising campaign that netted a significant contribution to the recovery process. We also appealed to the federal government to expedite the funding of a new school for the Pikangikum band.

On September 29, 2008 the United Church of Canada engaged in an historic occasion and Oriole-York Mills was represented. On that day the Moderator, the Rt. Rev. David Giuliano, apologized for the church’s involvement in the Residential School system. The apology was offered to the Chippewa community of Georgina Island First Nation in Lake Simcoe. It was an occasion for which the community and the Moderator had been preparing for over a year. It was a day of formal and informal activities and fellowship and I was honoured to witness the event as a member of the Aboriginal Solidarity Sharing Circle.

The day began officially at the Nanabush Trail with a welcome by Rev. BettyLou McNabb, minister of Georgina Island Native Church. Delores and Heather Charles conducted a smudge, a sacred ceremony of cleansing and purification, and Moderator Giuliano gave a blessing. We then went on a walking tour of Nanabush Trail where the natural beauty is occasionally dotted with teepees made of bark and drying racks for pelts. We were then taught, with patience and good humour, how to make dream catchers. The dream catcher has the important purpose of protecting you as you sleep by catching the bad dreams in its web while allowing the good dreams to pass through. Next was a tour of the island, with Moderator Giuliano seeing the sights from the back of a pick-up truck. This tour ended at the community centre where we joined people from neighbouring First Nation communities for a splendid potluck lunch.

Subsequently, at the lovely Georgina Island Native Church, we heard news from each of the communities, laughed at the good humour and joined together in song. The culmination was the Moderator’s reading of the apology and the presenting of framed copies for the church, the community centre and the band office. Moderator Giuliano, on behalf of the church, spoke thoughtfully and with sincerity, his words reflecting conviction and commitment. Our Georgina Island hosts showed characteristic grace, dignity, generosity and hospitality.

Ojibway writer Richard Wagamese has said, “We’re all neighbours and when you know your neighbours, when you can lean over the fence and hear each other’s stories, you foster understanding, harmony and community.” In his presentation, the Moderator expressed the view that we must confront our past in order to repair the present and bring hope to the future.

The apology offered by Moderator Giuliano and the time of sharing food and stories gave us a day during which we had the opportunity to both acknowledge our history and lean over the fence to our neighbours to know them a little better .