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Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, \u201cBrother Saul, the Lord\u2014Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here\u2014has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.\u201d Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul\u2019s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, and after taking some food, he regained his strength (Acts 9:17-19).

I am pausing my reflections on the Holy Spirit for one day. As many of you are doing, I find myself grieving over the revelations of so many bodies buried on the grounds of residential schools. These revelations raise significant questions caused by shock and horror. How can this be? How could the church have been so deeply involved?

And then, of course, how can we move forward? How can the devastating consequences of what happened at these schools be overcome? How can we as a country possibly get to a place where this does not keep raising its ugliness? More importantly, how can the church live in such a way as to redeem her image in our country? How can we be Christ\u2019s ambassadors of reconciliation in a context in which the church is guilty of such tremendous abuse?

An article in Christianity Today by Jennifer Singh, from Alberta, offered some suggestions. These were given to her by indigenous people in her congregation. I want to share them with you today.

First, \u201cend the silence around residential schools among the wider Canadian public; pay attention and really listen to the stories of survivors\u201d. This, I think, is rooted in the Biblical value on truth and truth telling. One of the ten commandments is, \u201cDo not lie.\u201d And also, \u201cThe truth will set you free\u201d, Jesus said. We need to take the time to listen to indigenous people, willing to hear their pain, if not firsthand, then at least second-hand accounts. This will take time, patience, and empathy.

Second, \u201csince people are not born racist, \u2018Stop teaching people how to be racist.\u2019 In other words, work to resist and reverse the sense of inferiority and cultural genocide the First Nation people have been subjected to.\u201d There are so many ways in which we stereotype people, seeing them only as part of a group. If we take Psalm 139 seriously for ourselves, then we need to honour others by taking it seriously for them too. If we are pro-life, then we need to see and hear each indigenous person as an individual not reduce them to a stereotype. We must learn not to speak and think in ways that reduce people in anyway. Can we accept the reality that we might be teaching children to be racist?

Third, \u201csince 94 Calls to Action came out of the Truth and Reconciliation Report, take these actions, some of which pertain to finding the remains of missing children and advocating for equal treatment\u201d. How many of us knew that this report included such actions? I had not taken the time to look at this report well enough to know this. I could have.

In the article, Dr. Singh refers to Acts 9. She writes, \u201cWe rarely highlight the character of Ananias in this story, but this is the character my congregants identify with. And they see Saul as a representative of how the church has treated them. Though God could have healed Saul\u2019s blindness without human help, God chose Ananias, one of Saul\u2019s potential victims, to come near to him, to touch him, and to complete his healing.\u201d

\u201cThe victim heals the perpetrator.\u201d

Will we allow this? Can we humble ourselves enough to receive from Canada\u2019s first nations people?

Tomorrow is Canada Day. There will be no Wilderness Wanderings. But there is plenty here for us to pray about. I suspect it will take more than two days for the Spirit to search our hearts about these things.

These things also include incredible hope here. Let us pray with hope for our country.