Tribal Indians condemn pope
[I did not understand the outrage of indigenous people towards the arrogance of our Western missionaries until my brilliant Nigerian college roommate, now a teaching doctor in this country, blew up on one occasion at the racial arrogance of Albert Schweitzer, then seen by Westerners as the saintly doctor who had brought medical assistance as well as his religious faith to Africa:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Schweitzer
Several of my CUNY colleagues commemorate Columbus day as the beginning event of racial genocide in the Americas.
This Pope -- in contrast to his predecessor -- seems almost deliberately insensitive with his hubristic comments on others, e.g. the Muslim slam last year.
This is obviously the major hazard for religious organizations that designate a single leader as their ultimate authority in all things. He is all too likely to get things wrong and, thus, may do irreparable harm to literally millions. This Pope's attack on abortion in Latin America, if successful, will mean the horrible deaths of many more thousands of women driven to butchering 'illegal' abortions. If one truly cared for children, one would not oppose contraception and abortion as a last resort when that fails. The women dying in Latin America are ones more often than not trying to care for too large families for which they cannot make basic living provisions. The Brazilians are currently considering moving into the modern (humane) world on this issue. Ed Kent]
......................................
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/D809D115-1128-4092-9BA6-30F716C56052.htm
Tribal Indians condemn pope
A Roman Catholic advocacy group for tribal Indians criticized Pope Benedict's speech [AFP]
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.
"It's arrogant and disrespectful to consider our cultural heritage secondary to theirs," said Jecinaldo Satere Mawe, chief co-ordinator of Coiab, an Amazon Indian group.
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.
Colonisation
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.
"To say the cultural decimation of our people represents a purification is offensive, and frankly, frightening"
Sandro Tuxa, leader of the movement of northeastern tribes
Many Indians today struggle for survival, stripped of their traditional ways of life and excluded from society.
Indian groups sent a letter to Benedict last week asking for support in defending their ancestral lands and culture.
The letter said the Indians had suffered a "process of genocide" since the first European colonisers had arrived.
Priests blessed conquistadors as they waged war on tribal Indians.
'Poorly advised'
Other tribal leaders also voiced their criticism on Monday.
Dionito Jose de Souza, a leader of the Makuxi tribe in northern Roraima state, said: "The state used the church to do the dirty work in colonising the Indians but they already asked forgiveness for that ... so is the pope taking back the church's word?"
Pope John Paul II spoke in 1992 of mistakes in the evangelisation of native peoples of the Americas.
"We repudiate the [pope's] comments," said Sandro Tuxa, leader of the movement of northeastern tribes.
"To say the cultural decimation of our people represents a purification is offensive, and frankly, frightening.
"I think [the pope] has been poorly advised."
The Roman Catholic church's own Indian advocacy group in Brazil also criticised Benedict's speech.
Paulo Suess, the advocacy group's adviser, said: "The pope doesn't understand the reality of the Indians here, his statement was wrong and indefensible."
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent 718-951-5324 (voice mail only) [blind copies]
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Schweitzer
Several of my CUNY colleagues commemorate Columbus day as the beginning event of racial genocide in the Americas.
This Pope -- in contrast to his predecessor -- seems almost deliberately insensitive with his hubristic comments on others, e.g. the Muslim slam last year.
This is obviously the major hazard for religious organizations that designate a single leader as their ultimate authority in all things. He is all too likely to get things wrong and, thus, may do irreparable harm to literally millions. This Pope's attack on abortion in Latin America, if successful, will mean the horrible deaths of many more thousands of women driven to butchering 'illegal' abortions. If one truly cared for children, one would not oppose contraception and abortion as a last resort when that fails. The women dying in Latin America are ones more often than not trying to care for too large families for which they cannot make basic living provisions. The Brazilians are currently considering moving into the modern (humane) world on this issue. Ed Kent]
......................................
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/D809D115-1128-4092-9BA6-30F716C56052.htm
Tribal Indians condemn pope
A Roman Catholic advocacy group for tribal Indians criticized Pope Benedict's speech [AFP]
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.
"It's arrogant and disrespectful to consider our cultural heritage secondary to theirs," said Jecinaldo Satere Mawe, chief co-ordinator of Coiab, an Amazon Indian group.
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.
Colonisation
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.
"To say the cultural decimation of our people represents a purification is offensive, and frankly, frightening"
Sandro Tuxa, leader of the movement of northeastern tribes
Many Indians today struggle for survival, stripped of their traditional ways of life and excluded from society.
Indian groups sent a letter to Benedict last week asking for support in defending their ancestral lands and culture.
The letter said the Indians had suffered a "process of genocide" since the first European colonisers had arrived.
Priests blessed conquistadors as they waged war on tribal Indians.
'Poorly advised'
Other tribal leaders also voiced their criticism on Monday.
Dionito Jose de Souza, a leader of the Makuxi tribe in northern Roraima state, said: "The state used the church to do the dirty work in colonising the Indians but they already asked forgiveness for that ... so is the pope taking back the church's word?"
Pope John Paul II spoke in 1992 of mistakes in the evangelisation of native peoples of the Americas.
"We repudiate the [pope's] comments," said Sandro Tuxa, leader of the movement of northeastern tribes.
"To say the cultural decimation of our people represents a purification is offensive, and frankly, frightening.
"I think [the pope] has been poorly advised."
The Roman Catholic church's own Indian advocacy group in Brazil also criticised Benedict's speech.
Paulo Suess, the advocacy group's adviser, said: "The pope doesn't understand the reality of the Indians here, his statement was wrong and indefensible."
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent 718-951-5324 (voice mail only) [blind copies]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CollegeConversation
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PeaceEfforts
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EndingPoverty
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/440neighborhood
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentConcerns
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AcademicFreedom
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrivacyRights
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Israel_Palestine
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FindingHumaneJobs
http://BlogByEdKent.blogspot.com/
http://www.bloggernews.net
posted by Ed Kent at 8:12 AM
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