Post by Okwes on May 23, 2007 10:34:38 GMT -5
Brazil's Indians offended by Pope comments
By Raymond Colitt
Mon May 14, 3:15 PM ET
news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070514/wl_nm/pope_brazil_indians_dc
Outraged Indian leaders in Brazil said on Monday they were offended
by Pope Benedict's "arrogant and disrespectful" comments that the
Roman Catholic Church had purified them and a revival of their
religions would be a backward step.
In a speech to Latin American and Caribbean bishops at the end of a
visit to Brazil, the Pope said the Church had not imposed itself on
the indigenous peoples of the Americas.
They had welcomed the arrival of European priests at the time of the
conquest as they were "silently longing" for Christianity, he said.
Millions of tribal Indians are believed to have died as a result of
European colonization backed by the Church since Columbus landed in
the Americas in 1492, through slaughter, disease or enslavement.
Many Indians today struggle for survival, stripped of their traditional ways of life and excluded from society.
"It's arrogant and disrespectful to consider our cultural heritage
secondary to theirs," said Jecinaldo Satere Mawe, chief coordinator
of the Amazon Indian group Coiab.
Several Indian groups sent a letter to the Pope last week asking for
his support in defending their ancestral lands and culture. They said the Indians had suffered a "process of genocide" since the first European colonizers had arrived.
Priests blessed conquistadors as they waged war on the indigenous
peoples, although some later defended them and many today are the
most vociferous allies of Indians.
"The state used the Church to do the dirty work in colonizing the
Indians but they already asked forgiveness for that ... so is the
Pope taking back the Church's word?" said Dionito Jose de Souza a
leader of the Makuxi tribe in northern Roraima state.
Pope John Paul spoke in 1992 of mistakes in the evangelization of
native peoples of the Americas.
Pope Benedict not only upset many Indians but also Catholic priests
who have joined their struggle, said Sandro Tuxa, who heads the
movement of northeastern tribes.
"We repudiate the Pope's comments," Tuxa said. "To say the cultural
decimation of our people represents a purification is offensive, and
frankly, frightening.
"I think (the Pope) has been poorly advised."
Even the Catholic Church's own Indian advocacy group in Brazil, known as Cimi, distanced itself from the Pope.
"The Pope doesn't understand the reality of the Indians here, his
statement was wrong and indefensible," Cimi advisor Father Paulo
Suess told Reuters. "I too was upset."
By Raymond Colitt
Mon May 14, 3:15 PM ET
news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070514/wl_nm/pope_brazil_indians_dc
Outraged Indian leaders in Brazil said on Monday they were offended
by Pope Benedict's "arrogant and disrespectful" comments that the
Roman Catholic Church had purified them and a revival of their
religions would be a backward step.
In a speech to Latin American and Caribbean bishops at the end of a
visit to Brazil, the Pope said the Church had not imposed itself on
the indigenous peoples of the Americas.
They had welcomed the arrival of European priests at the time of the
conquest as they were "silently longing" for Christianity, he said.
Millions of tribal Indians are believed to have died as a result of
European colonization backed by the Church since Columbus landed in
the Americas in 1492, through slaughter, disease or enslavement.
Many Indians today struggle for survival, stripped of their traditional ways of life and excluded from society.
"It's arrogant and disrespectful to consider our cultural heritage
secondary to theirs," said Jecinaldo Satere Mawe, chief coordinator
of the Amazon Indian group Coiab.
Several Indian groups sent a letter to the Pope last week asking for
his support in defending their ancestral lands and culture. They said the Indians had suffered a "process of genocide" since the first European colonizers had arrived.
Priests blessed conquistadors as they waged war on the indigenous
peoples, although some later defended them and many today are the
most vociferous allies of Indians.
"The state used the Church to do the dirty work in colonizing the
Indians but they already asked forgiveness for that ... so is the
Pope taking back the Church's word?" said Dionito Jose de Souza a
leader of the Makuxi tribe in northern Roraima state.
Pope John Paul spoke in 1992 of mistakes in the evangelization of
native peoples of the Americas.
Pope Benedict not only upset many Indians but also Catholic priests
who have joined their struggle, said Sandro Tuxa, who heads the
movement of northeastern tribes.
"We repudiate the Pope's comments," Tuxa said. "To say the cultural
decimation of our people represents a purification is offensive, and
frankly, frightening.
"I think (the Pope) has been poorly advised."
Even the Catholic Church's own Indian advocacy group in Brazil, known as Cimi, distanced itself from the Pope.
"The Pope doesn't understand the reality of the Indians here, his
statement was wrong and indefensible," Cimi advisor Father Paulo
Suess told Reuters. "I too was upset."