The Anishinabe Spiritual Centre has been designated a Jubilee 2025 Pilgrimage Site.
The Jesuits of Canada, which had overseen the centre located just south of Espanola over the last four decades, transferred the governance of the Anishinabe Spiritual Centre to a newly formed Board of Directors on Friday.
The board will be Indigenous-led and includes the participation of the Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie.
Officials say Friday’s gathering also included the designation of making it a Jubilee 2025 Pilgrimage Site by the Catholic Church, recognizing it as a sacred place of reflection, renewal, and reconciliation.
Pope Francis declared 2025 a Jubilee Year.
Officials say pilgrims from across Canada and beyond will be encouraged to visit the Centre to experience its blend of Indigenous and Catholic spirituality and participate in special programming.
The Centre says the transfer solidifies decades of Indigenous involvement and vision in the Centre’s programming and cultural teachings.
The new Board, made up of the former trustees, who are now considered directors, will oversee the Centre’s operations, while maintaining strong ties to the Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie, under the guidance of Bishop Thomas Dowd, for sacramental guidance and spiritual oversight.
The three-hour ceremony, led by local Indigenous representation, included a storyteller and Elder, drum song, and the integration of First Nation beliefs, including the sharing of tobacco, strawberries and water.
Specifics of the ceremony are not publicized falling in line with First Nation tradition of the sacredness of the ceremony, which concluded with the signing of the document officially transferring the Centre’s governance.
The ceremony was attended by Espanola Mayor Doug Gervais, Algoma-Manitoulin MPP Bill Rosenberg, Elders, Fr. Jeffrey S. Burwell, SJ, Provincial, Jesuits of Canada, Bishop Thomas Dowd, Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie, the new Board of Directors & Members, including board chair Rosella Kinoshameg, as well as invited guests from the community at large ,under the guidance of the Centre’s Executive Director Edwina (Eddy) MacDonald.
Following the formalities, Bishop Dowd and the Jesuits presented to everyone in attendance and then shared in a community feast to mark the occasion.
The ASC Board Directors & Members.
Board Of Directors:
Rosella Kinoshameg (Chair)
Sandra Southwind
Debbie Ense
Mona Jones
Henry Mandamin
Mary O’Donnell
Members
Rosella Kinoshameg
Mary O’Donnell
Noah MacDonald
Bishop Thomas Dowd
