A non-apology from the Pope
The Pope faced pretty much global opprobrium and condemnation for his foot-in-mouth proclamation that the Catholic-led invasion of the Americas "had not imposed itself on the indigenous peoples" and that the invaders "purified" the natives, apparently by murdering them.
The Big Pointy Hat has apologized, sort of:
Speaking in Italian to a weekly audience here, the pope said that it was “not possible to forget the suffering and the injustices inflicted by colonizers against the indigenous population, whose fundamental human rights were often trampled.”
So far, so good, but Pope Benny goes on to say:
“While we do not overlook the various injustices and sufferings which accompanied colonization, the Gospel has expressed and continues to express the identity of the peoples in this region, and provides inspiration to address the challenges of our globalized era,” he told pilgrims in St. Peters’ Square today, speaking in English.
Hogwash.
He may not be "overlooking" the genocide of millions of people, but the statement that "the Gospel has expressed ... the identity of the peoples in this region" is no different from his original statement that the native people were "silently longing" for Christianity before it showed up.
He's an apologist for genocide, no matter how he tries to smooth it over with recognition of "injustice."
And that's quite some "inspiration to address the challenges" of globalization he's preaching. With the Catholic hierarchy's wholesale suppression of liberation theology, spearheaded by this pope and his predecessor, the dudes in the funny robes have completely abandoned any pretense of empathy with the poor and downtrodden of Latin America, especially where globalization is concerned. Liberation theology was the only viable mechanism for the Church to improve the lives of the poor in the developing world, but the current pope and his predecessor abandoned it in favor of rigidly dogmatic aversion to anything "socialist."
Whatever. Pope Benny's apology is just as insulting as his original gaffe.