The US Conference of Catholic Bishops issued a formal apology on Friday to Indigenous people for the mistreatment and trauma inflicted by the Catholic Church. This apology is part of a document approved by US Catholic bishops during its annual spring meeting in Louisville, Kentucky.
The document, titled “Keeping Christ’s Sacred Promise: A Pastoral Framework for Indigenous Ministry,” not only includes the apology but also delves into the church’s historical role in the boarding schools for Native Americans that enforced assimilation in the 19th and 20th centuries. Additionally, the document outlines a series of new policies for ministering to Indigenous Catholics.
According to the document, many North American Indigenous Catholics today can trace their faith back to their ancestors' decision to embrace Catholicism centuries ago. However, there has been a sense of abandonment felt by many Indigenous Catholics in their relationship with Church leaders due to a lack of understanding of their unique cultural needs.
The bishops expressed regret in the document, stating, “We apologize for the failure to nurture, strengthen, honor, recognize, and appreciate those entrusted to our pastoral care.”
Native Americans make up approximately 3.5% of Catholics in the United States, as reported by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. The bishops acknowledged in the document how Native Americans were coerced into assimilating into White culture by the church.
Describing the boarding schools, the bishops noted, “In these schools, Indigenous children were forced to abandon their traditional languages, dress, and customs.” The document further explained that boarding schools were viewed as a means to achieve cultural assimilation by separating Indigenous children from their families and Tribes and “Americanizing” them while they were still impressionable.
