OTTAWA, Ontario — Despite physical exhaustion, storms, rough
waters, food shortages and waking up to slip into wet socks some mornings,
Jesuit paddlers said a more-than-500-mile canoe pilgrimage fulfilled all their
expectations and more.
The group of about 50 paddlers completed a 26-day odyssey along a
historic river-route traveled four centuries ago by explorers and Jesuit
martyrs, including St. Jean de Brebeuf. They arrived Aug. 15 at a First Nations
reserve near Montreal.
The pilgrimage was "definitely tougher" than the paddlers
thought it would be, said Erik Sorensen, a Jesuit scholastic who directed the
pilgrimage. The pilgrims quickly learned to pray for sunshine.
"It would rain (some days), everything would be wet, your
gear wet, your clothes wet and nothing would dry for a couple of days,"
Sorensen said. "Putting on wet socks in the morning is not a pleasant
experience."
But enduring those challenges helped give purpose to the
pilgrimage and strengthen bonds among the diverse group, which included
Jesuits, indigenous peoples, religious and laypeople, he said.
"One of my biggest hopes for the pilgrimage was (to develop)
a sense of deep connection between the paddlers," said Sorensen.
"That was there in spades in the end."
They forged "deep relationships" and formed "bonds
that will last a lifetime," he said.
"What was unexpected was the sincerity and the depths we
were able to go in the month. I knew there was going to be sharing and great
participation, but this went even further than I thought it was ever going to
be," he said.
The pilgrimage, organized to mark Canada's 150th anniversary, was
dedicated to the cause of reconciliation with First Nations people. It launched
July 21 from Sainte-Marie Among the Hurons, in Midland, Ontario, and ended at
Kahnawake Mohawk Territory on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River.
Through shared struggles during their travels, a sense of
camaraderie and understanding developed among the paddlers, said Kevin Kelly, a
Jesuit scholastic and trip organizer. Being in a position of shared
"vulnerability where you are struggling" helps people learn about
each other and "understand how similar we are, even when we come from very
different places," he said.
"It really does help you put yourself in the other person's
shoes."
Sorensen said that while he had a good intellectual understanding
of the history of Canada's discredited residential schools policy and the
harmful impact of those schools on indigenous peoples, listening to fellow
paddlers share personal stories about generational trauma raised his
understanding to a new level.
"To have someone whose mother was impacted, whose family is
still working through impacts of residential schools, to hear how their own
lives have been, about healing from those experiences, it was really
moving," Sorensen said.
The pilgrims were supported along the route by several parish,
First Nations and religious communities, who welcomed the paddlers and provided
food and a place to rest.
Although Kelly said the generosity "exceeded all
expectations" and the communities were "unbelievably welcoming and
incredibly hospitable," not everything went as planned. For instance, many
communities underestimated how much food 40-50 paddlers would need each day, he
said.
"By the skin of their teeth, they would make enough food,"
Kelly said.
But on some days, organizers had to figure out where to get more
food, or how the available food could be stretched for paddlers expending
thousands of calories a day, he said. There were complicated scenarios every
day, and every day things worked out in the end, Kelly said. It took about
two-thirds of the trip before they trusted things would work out each day.
"Coming to that sense of trust was really important,"
Kelly said.
As for the physical challenges, Sorensen said not only was paddling
all day extremely demanding physically, being constantly wet on some days was a
trial.
"The weather is always a big one," said Sorensen.
"We were really blessed with really good weather (but) we had rainy and
stormy days."
One day, they thought it was safe to depart, but after a couple
of hours the wind picked up, whipping up waves and forcing the paddlers to take
cover, Sorensen said.
"You realize how powerless you are when you are out in
nature like that, how attuned and attentive you have to be to nature to be in
harmony with it."
Sorensen said he does not think he'll do another 26-day canoe
pilgrimage, but he'd like to share this experience with others — on pilgrimages
of four or five days.
Gyapong is Ottawa correspondent for Canadian Catholic
News.