Taking back what was ripped away: Indigenous healer hosts traditional fasting ceremony

Indigenous healer hosts fasting camp Jules Tapas, a traditional healer & therapist in northern Ontario has been hosting traditional ceremonies at his home for almost a decade.

An Indigenous healer and therapist in northern Ontario has been hosting traditional ceremonies at his home in Timmins for almost a decade – to help participants heal from generational trauma inflicted by the residential school system.

This weekend people from all over the region and beyond participated in a fasting camp, where they prayed for several days without food or water.

People at the gathering said they were there to reconnect to their cultural roots with organizers adding this process is about healing some deep emotional wounds.

Jules Tapas the traditional healer hosting the weekend’s activities told CTV News that he has been holding a series of traditional First Nations ceremonies every as a way to take back what the residential school system “ripped away.”

“It’s really important for our culture, our ancestors, to keep honouring their legacy. Getting in touch with our culture is a beautiful thing,” he said.

“We’re breaking that cycle of trauma.”

Attendees camped out on his 35-acre property for a fasting ceremony – which dedicates four days and nights to praying to the creator and reflecting on their past.

“That’s the time they get to know who they are. They discover their own identity,” said Tapas.

“It’s amazing to see them grow.”

Tapas added that in their culture it is considered a right of passage.

As part of the ceremony, people gathered around the sacred fire who have fasted before in order to share their stories and offer support.

“Ceremony is actually what brought me out of my trauma because I didn’t realize at the time, when I was in school, like, wow I have a lot of stuff that I need to bring up and focus on and really heal from,” said Summer Rickard, a mental health and additions worker who participated in the ceremony.

The fast is a commitment to self-exploration, she said and must be done entirely on an empty stomach.

“You’re sacrificing your physical self to connect with God,” said Rickard.

“You really have to prepare yourself spiritually, mentally, emotionally, physically.”

Preparation for the fasting ceremony is a year-long process of engaging in ceremonies like sweat lodges and abstaining from caffeine and other drugs – but ensuring to have plenty of food and water before beginning the right of passage.

Those in attendance said the ceremony and traditions are practiced across the continent – in fact Michael Weston travelled from South Dakota to participate.

“I look inside and I really see my life and how my traumas affect me today,” said Weston.

"Understanding and recognizing those, by being in such a deep reflective state, helps me and others become better people.”

Past participants told CTV News that the healing process is communal as much as it is personal – it is a way to heal whole communities from their traumas.

“Be able to give some type of hope to somebody. And by doing this, also, it affects my family. That positive energy, it’s like a wave that goes through your family and they feel it too, so they want that too,” said Lisa Wesley, one of the past participants around the sacred fire this weekend.

Tapas said he was the first in his family to rediscover these traditions and since then he has seen people from across the Mushkegowuk territory and even beyond look to join in the hallowed rites.

“This is where I feel whole and it’s amazing,” he said.

“We’re in the right place, at the right time.”

Tapas added he intends to hold these ceremonies for the rest of his life to ensure these traditions are kept alive.

If you are a former residential school student in distress or have been affected by the residential school system and need help, you can contact the 24-hour Indian Residential School Crisis Line: 1-866-925-4419. Additional mental-health support and resources for Indigenous Peoples are available here.