This message was delivered by Sharon Pasula, Oksapewis/Aboriginal Cultural and Educational Helper, November 16, 2014 at the Standing Stones services at both All Saints Cathedral 9:15 am service and at St. Faith’s 11:00 am service. The gospel reading for that day was Matthew 25: 14-30. Follows is the basis of her message. She inserted commentary that is not written down. It was suggested to post the message for educational purposes. Thank you for listening.
November 16, 2014 Standing Stones Liturgy- Sharon Pasula
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, my Lord.
Good morning everyone.
Remembrance Day may already be a dim memory in the minds of many and for others …………. Remembrance Day may be like a wound still waiting to be healed.
Because Remembrance Day was only a few days ago, I thought I would take this opportunity to honour Aboriginal veterans. That is why the Aboriginal story for Standing Stones today is about Sergeant Dorothy Bellerose. I chose a female because we seldom hear about the women in the military. I chose Sgt. Bellerose because of the last quote, “I remain a proud Canadian Mêtis woman, who has done service for my country and comrades in many ways, and will continue to do so until my final hours.”
Unfortunately, most Canadians are unaware of the huge sacrifice Aboriginal veterans made until recently that non-Aboriginal veterans did not. Yes, I am saying that Aboriginal veterans sacrificed much more than non-Aboriginal veterans, and I’ll tell you why.
http://www.ictinc.ca/blog/aboriginal-veterans
Aboriginal Veterans: Equals on the battlefields, but not at home
Aboriginal People in Canada have fought on the front line of every major battle Canada has been involved in, and have done so with valour and distinction. It is estimated that 7,000 First Nations People served in the First and Second World Wars, and the Korean War; an unknown number of Métis, Inuit and non-Status Indians also served. The number is unknown because the government was more concerned with status Natives.
However, it was not until 1995, fifty years after the Second World War that Aboriginal veterans were allowed to lay Remembrance Day wreaths at the National War Memorial to remember and honour their dead comrades.
At the time of the First World War, First Nations were exempt from conscription because they were not considered “citizens” of Canada and did not have the right to vote. To serve in the Canadian Air Force or Canadian Navy, you had to be “of pure European descent”; this restriction was rescinded in 1940 for the Air Force and 1943 for the Navy.
It was the Diefenbaker government in 1960 that changed the section of the Indian Act which denied First Nations people the vote. Also known as ‘the extension of the franchise’ (or the right to vote).
First Nations people before this time, as federal “wards” were not allowed to vote in federal elections. Following the two World Wars, veterans were enfranchised, but only if they gave up their Indian Status – only 250 voluntarily accepted the offer. Veterans could vote only if they became non-Indians.
After the First World War, Aboriginal veterans did not receive the same assistance as other returned soldiers under the War Veterans Allowance Act; this policy endured from 1932 until 1936. Many Aboriginal veterans from the Second World War found that when they returned home after fighting overseas for Canada, they were no longer considered Indians because the Indian Act specified that Indians absent from the reserve for four years were no longer Indians.
Many Aboriginal soldiers had to become enfranchised before they could sign up to fight in the Second World War, which meant that when they returned to their home communities, they no longer had Indian status.
During the Second World War, more than 3,000 enlisted (of which over 200 died) and those that remained in Canada supported the war effort monetarily. So they didn’t go themselves but gave money towards the effort.
Aboriginal veterans did not have the right to obtain other benefits available to non-Aboriginal veterans due to Indian Act restrictions. Between 1932 and 1936, Aboriginal veterans on reserves in need of help, were to be treated like other Aboriginals on reserves rather than as veterans. Consequently, many Second World War veterans, re-enlisted for the Korean War simply because they were unable to re-enter their previous lives. Sadly, the lives of numerous Aboriginal veterans ended in despair and poverty.
In light of all of this why did Aboriginal people enlist?
Many Native veterans volunteered for the same reasons other Canadians did, i.e. because their friends and relatives did, for patriotism, for the chance of adventure or simply as mentioned earlier, to earn a guaranteed wage.
Some volunteered for reasons that were unique to their band or reserve. One member of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte Band attributes his reserve’s high enlistment ratio to its ties to
Great Britain: “We came over with the United Empire Loyalists from the United States. Our treaties are with the Crown, so, when the Crown calls, you go.”18
One Native historian suggests that the Great War offered Indian men who lived on reserves an opportunity to assume a more active role.19 According to his theory, reserve life had made the role of Indian men less important, a change to which many had difficulty adjusting. He also says, for some, the war presented a chance to escape boredom on the reserve.
Finally, tradition was also a factor in the response. Natives in Canada had a well-established history of fighting on the side of Great Britain, dating back to the activities of the Mohawk Chief Joseph Brant during the 18th Century.
Regardless of their reason for enlisting, it was a profound decision. I think it’s safe to say they used all their talents to serve.
In the parable of the talents one ….. did not serve …. while the others did. Put another way interestingly, we reap what we sow. If we sow much, we reap much. If we sow nothing, we reap nothing.
So I choose to follow the example of my Indigenous brothers and sisters who chose to sow everything, who chose to use all their talents to serve. In my case, I serve my Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
As Sergeant Dorothy Bellerose chose to serve her country and comrades until her final hours, I chose to serve my Lord until my final hours.