Pope Bendedict Argues Catholic Church 'Purified' Indigenous Peoples
During his recent trip to Latin America, Pope Benedict XVI offended millions when he arrogantly suggested that Catholicism had purified indigenous populations, and called the resurgence of indigenous religions a step backward. He also said the native populations were longing for Christianity, and had welcomed the Catholic priests at the time of European conquest.
He tried to clean it up afterwards by noting the, "sufferings and injustices inflicted by the colonizers on the indigenous populations whose human and basic rights often were trampled," but the damage was done.
The Pope seems to have selective amnesia when it comes to the Church and its horrendous history of human rights disasters against people of color. This happens at a time when Catholicism is becoming an increasingly southern religion and an increasingly brown religion. Roughly half of Catholics are in Latin America. Not only is the Pope out of step with the needs and everyday realities of the Third World, he is not speaking their language, and not owning up to the sins of the past.
