The Vatican disavows the “Doctrine of Discovery” against the Indians

Pope Nicholas V granted “full and free permission” to the Portuguese Crown to “capture and subjugate Saracens and pagans” in its African expansion (Bull Dum Diversas, 1452). Alexander VI Borgia blessed the arrival of the Spaniards in America and stipulated the division of dominions between Castile and Portugal (Bull Inter Caetera, 1493). These and other papal texts generated a juridical concept that supported colonization. Congratulations to the Vatican for having finally condemned that doctrine, saying, for example:

The Church has become more aware of the sufferings, past and present, of indigenous peoples caused by the expropriation of their lands.

The Church has seen the importance of confronting the concept called the “Doctrine of Discovery,” according to which the discovery of land by settlers granted the exclusive right to extinguish, by purchase or conquest, the title or possession of such land by indigenous peoples.

The Church is aware that the contents of these documents have been manipulated for political purposes by the colonial powers to justify immoral acts against the indigenous populations, sometimes carried out without opposition from the ecclesiastical authorities. It is right to acknowledge these errors, to recognize the terrible effects of assimilation policies and the pain experienced by indigenous populations, and to ask for forgiveness.  Furthermore, Pope Francis has exhorted: “May the Christian community never again allow itself to be contaminated by the idea that there exists a culture superior to others and that it is legitimate to use means of coercion against others.”

(Joint Note of the Dicasteries for Culture and Integral Human Development, Vatican, March 30, 2023)

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)