Mission and Power: Stories of residential schools experiences in Canada

“Chapter 4: Mission and Power” (2010). In Edinburgh 2010 Volume II: Witnessing to Christ Today (Daryl Balia & Kirsteen Kim, eds). Regnum Books International, Oxford, U.K. pp. 86-115

http://www.edinburgh2010.org/fileadmin/files/edinburgh2010/files/Study_Process/reports/E2010%20II-whole-final.pdf

To commemorate the Centenary of the World Missionary Conference, held in Edinburgh 1910, an intercontinental and multi-denominational project developed, now known as Edinburgh 2010. Part of the project was a process of collaborative reflection on nine study themes and seven transversal themes identified as being key to mission in the 21st century.

In 2008, representatives from approximately 20 Christian organizations in Canada met to identify a Canadian contribution to Edinburgh 2010. An interest emerged in the theme of Mission and Power as expressed in the churches’ relations with indigenous peoples.

The study team proposed an approach featuring information and reflections on Canadian residential schools. “The study team wrestled with the subject of the ‘power’ of the pen, recognizing that in choosing writers, power would be given to some over the many others who could have contributed. Since indigenous peoples’ voices are underrepresented in the literature, the team invited three indigenous authors to write their stories drawing on material from their personal and family’s experiences of residential schools.” The fourth story comes from a Canadian clergyman of European origin from one of the churches which ran the schools.

The stories are followed by excerpts of twelve international responses to these stories from individuals (indigenous and non-indigenous) who compared and contrasted experiences of mission and power in their contexts (e.g. Wales, South Africa, Gaza, Peru). These responses can be found in full at: http://www.edinburgh2010.org/en/study-themes/main-study-themes/mission-and-power/core-group-work.html