Responding to Indigenous people, Vatican rejects discovery doctrine

The Vatican on Thursday responded to Indigenous demands and formally repudiated the “doctrine of discovery”, the theories backed by 15th-century “papal bulls” that legitimised the colonial-era seizure of Native lands and form the basis of some property laws today.

A Vatican statement said the papal bulls, or decrees, “did not adequately reflect the equal dignity and rights of Indigenous peoples” and have never been considered expressions of the Catholic faith.

AP