Wanuskewin Heritage Park could play host to the Pope sometime in the next few years.
Saskatchewan bishops have extended an invitation to Pope Francis to visit the province as part of a recent push for the pontiff to apologize for the Roman Catholic Church's role in Canada’s residential schools. The push follows the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s calls to action, released last year.
“It would be an incredibly momentous event to the meaning that it would bring for indigenous people, for our churches,” Regina Archbishop Donald Bolen said.
“The potential healing and reconciliation that could flow from such a visit, I think, is great and worthy of the effort that we’re ready to put in if we hear it could happen.”
The planning for a potential visit is in its early stages, according to Bolen. The Pope’s 2017 schedule is full, but the church states he would consider an invitation to Canada in 2018 or 2019.
Bolen said he expects to receive Pope Francis’s 2018 schedule within the next 10 months.
A pope has never visited Saskatchewan.
