Indian leaders in Brazil have reacted angrily to comments by Pope Benedict that they had been purified by the Roman Catholic church since Columbus landed in the Americas in 1492.
In a speech to bishops at the end of a visit to Brazil on Sunday, Benedict said indigenous people of the Americas had welcomed European priests after conquest.
The pope had said the peoples of the Americas had a “silent longing” for Christianity and welcomed European priests’ arrival.
He said the church had not imposed itself on the indigenous peoples of the Americas.
Since Colombus’s landing, millions of tribal Indians are believed to have died as a result of European colonisation backed by the Roman Catholic church through murder, disease or enslavement.
I can look out my living room window, south to the Ortiz mountains. Pueblo Indians toiled as slaves there – mining gold for Spanish conquistadors. They were tortured and executed if they didn’t work hard enough. And their slavemasters were blessed by colonial priests for doing God’s work.
Someone might explain to the pope that the “silent longing” was for freedom!
The Pope thinks he and his kind have a lock on “morality”. It makes me glad am Agnostic. Frak’n hypocrites.
yep, over the course of this nation’s history, americans have engaged in ethnic cleansing, genocide, apartheid, wholesale pollution, imperialism, and slavery.
and although some revisionists would like to paper over the darker side of our heritage, no one should try to erase these facts
why? because they highlight how far we’ve come as a nation in realizing that being inclusive and open has made us very rich indeed.
Domine, Domine, Domine… you’re all Catholics now.
J/P=?
One of my favorite ironic illustrations of all time.
I have a t-shirt with it. A present from an Anglo cop who happens to work for a Tribal Police Department.
Is this the Popes idea of stand up comedy? Bdump-bump. Gotta love that picture Ed. The most popular T-shirt sold in these here parts.
Get over it already. [edited: comments guide]
How many other countries today have people with a silent longing for freedom?
#2 – why? because they highlight how far we’ve come as a nation in realizing that being inclusive and open has made us very rich indeed.
Comment by grog — 5/15/2007 @ 7:36 am
And someday, we’ll look back at today and realize how far backward we’ve slid – if things keep going like they are.
Roman Catholic church is pretty much alike the Evangelical church: Anything that gives them plenty of money is holy to them.
wtf! This is just as bad as that church in spain that is condemned by the Church Leaders for using white bread in place of communion wafers (reason being the congregation is primarily homeless/street-people, and thay dont really identify w/ the wafers – they DO identify w/ bread)
Its statements like this one that turn people away from organized religion – stupid, just plain stupid.
I bet the pope & dubya share the same speech writer.
If only the noble savages had been left alone to keep scalping and beheading each other, they might have created a great society. Viva la raza. All those white devil colonists came over to do was murder, rape, and spread disease, because that’s all they do.
In other news, Jerry Fallwell has been dead for 10 minutes and yet no one on this site has jumped on his grave yet!
11. Please, I want the first shot.
#11…I don’t think you could have done a better job of displaying your ignorance of the people who lived here before we got to this continent, or your self-righteous certainty that your society and your way is the only way. Bravo.
#11 – “… after being found unconscious in his office at Liberty University…”
I guess “god” came calling…
Hello little man. I WILL DESTROY YOU! *smite*
#13 – I believe that what #11 was getting at is that once again whites, dogs, rats & disease have destroyed what could have been a much more vibrant culture/society/nation/whatever.
#3, Domine, Domine, Domine… you’re all Catholics now.
Down on yer knees lad, do ye recognize what I’m holdin’ over yer head?
This is a pope joke, right? Where’s the punch line?
15. LOL!!
Here’s another link to the story on Reuters. I was hoping that a single source might have gotten something subtly wrong about the quote. No such luck.
http://tinyurl.com/2vzxfq
So, I guess it’s another case of religion twisting morals into a pretzel so badly that genocide can appear to be a good thing. It also makes it another good example of why I’m an antitheist. If religion creates morals, it creates sick twisted despicable morals.
Well, now we all know why the new Comedy Club opened in Vatican City went under. 🙂
This Pope is a *huge* step backwards for the Catholic Church, especially if we compare him to John Paul II.
This man marks the return to fundamentalism of the Catholic Church.
He’s the Vatican equivalent of George W Bush…
Just two more from the Firesign Theater:
“All out for Fort Stinkin’ Desert, last Indian reservation for 2,000 miles!
OK folks, you’ve got fifteen minutes, get ’em while you can. [Get the Senator back in the bus.]”
“Oh boy, corn!! Now we can make whiskey!!”
On the serious side, there are still a lot of theories about the demise of the Mayans, Aztecs, Anasazi. They had architecture, agriculture, astronomy — rather advanced cultures for their time (well, except for that whole ‘human sacrifice’ thing.) At least they weren’t cannibals, glorifying the eating of Christ’s body and drinking His blood every Sunday.
#21 – they didnt really have beasts of burden (aka like a horse or an ox) – or wheels… or sure, they had wheels on toys for children, but without some animals to pull the fully loaded carts around… well, you get the idea…
the Church can NOT be Wrong.
It never has been wrong.
It will do what is needed.
Only difference between a Polititian and a religious fanatic is WHOM they THINK they are working for.
#22, Tallwookie, they sure had some cool buildings, though. And trade routes. And, mmm, chocolate and peppers. If I knew anything about archeology and scuba diving, I’d like to try the cenote pools / wells.
http://www.physorg.com/news91884230.html
Only a true bigot could praise the Spanish for bringing the Inquisition and the auto de fe and the Inquisition to the New World to save the locals from their barbarous religious practices …
Are what the European conquerers really that much worse then then the natives?
Both practiced constant warfare with their neighbors.
Both had a caste system.
Both practiced slavery.
Both, oops, the natives practiced ritual killing of captured enemies.
Both had strong belief systems where religious leaders held considerable influence.
Both had ritual killings or sacrifices to their gods.
Yup, almost even score there for barbarity. Now, what are you saying about the “noble savage”?
Mr. Fusion,
Even if what you say is correct, though I’m surprised you deny that the Europeans practiced ritual killing of their captured enemies (I’d say the Inquisition with torture and killing qualifies), how does that make any genocide acceptable? How does it make slavery acceptable? Why condone evil done by either side?
Genocide is acceptable if you’re on the winning side (becasue victors write history). Same w/ slavery. Remember, we’re not condoning the evil, only rationalizing it.