(CNN) — Pope Francis spoke of his “sadness, indignation and shame” at the Catholic Church’s role in the abuse of indigenous Canadian children in residential schools, as he began a week-long “penitential pilgrimage” to the country.
The pope apologized and promised a “serious investigation” into what happened in a speech at a meeting with indigenous people in Edmonton, Alberta, on Monday.
Indigenous leaders had long called for a papal apology for the damage inflicted over decades on indigenous children, who suffered abuse and the erasure of indigenous culture in the country’s residential schools.
“I apologize, in particular, for the way in which many members of the Church and religious communities cooperated, especially through their indifference, in the projects of cultural destruction and forced assimilation promoted by the governments of the time, culminating in the residential school system,” the pontiff said.
Pope Francis dons a headdress during a visit to indigenous people at Maskwacis in Edmonton, Alberta, on Monday.
Last year, hundreds of unmarked graves were discovered on the grounds of former residential schools in British Columbia and Saskatchewan.
And Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission has reported that more than 4,000 indigenous children died of neglect or abuse in residential schools, many of which were run by the Catholic Church.
“Faced with this deplorable evil, the Church kneels before God and implores his forgiveness for the sins of his children,” Pope Francis said. “I humbly ask forgiveness for the evil committed by so many Christians against indigenous peoples.”
And the pontiff stressed that his apology is only the first step in correcting these mistakes.
“An important part of this process will be doing serious fact-finding about what happened in the past and helping residential school survivors experience healing from the traumas they’ve suffered,” he said.
Pope Francis will also travel to Quebec and Iqaluit, capital of the Canadian territory of Nunavut, during the trip. Two Canadian cardinals will accompany him throughout his visit, Cardinal Marc Ouellet and Cardinal Michael Czerny.
Francisco, 85, canceled a trip to Africa earlier this month due to knee problems.
With information from CNN’s Rob Picheta, Livia Borghese and Cecilia Armstrong