Church defends Indigenous peoples: “Doctrine of Discovery” was never Catholic

Thursday, March 30, 2023

Salt + Light Media

Thanks to dialogue with Indigenous peoples, “the Church has acquired a greater awareness of their sufferings, past and present, due to the expropriation of their lands … as well as the policies of forced assimilation, promoted by the governmental authorities of the time, intended to eliminate their Indigenous cultures,” according to a “Joint Statement” issued by the Dicastery for Culture and Education and the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, and published on Thursday.

Comment on Note on the “Doctrine of Discovery”

Thursday, March 30, 2023

Salt + Light Media

Speaking of historical injustices and war crimes in his encyclical Fratelli Tutti, Pope Francis says "it is easy to be tempted to turn the page, to say that all these things happened long ago and we should look to the future. For God’s sake, no! We can never move forward without remembering the past; we do not progress without an honest and unclouded memory." (Fratelli Tutti #249)

Statement by the CCCB on the “Doctrine of Discovery”

Thursday, March 30, 2023

Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops

The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (“CCCB”) is grateful that the Dicastery for Culture and Education and the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development have issued a Joint Statement addressing the concept of the “Doctrine of Discovery,”

Joint Statement on the “Doctrine of Discovery”

Thursday, March 30, 2023

Salt + Light Media

1. In fidelity to the mandate received from Christ, the Catholic Church strives to promote universal fraternity and respect for the dignity of every human being. 2. For this reason, in the course of history the Popes have condemned acts of violence, oppression, social injustice and slavery, including those committed against Indigenous peoples.