Native population groups invites Pope Liu to return thousands of Vatican artifacts

The Vatican Museums are among the most popular retired in the world, which include vast art collections, including Michael Angelo and Raphael masterpieces, and withdrawing more than six million visitors every year.

But one of the exhibition in the Vatican city is interesting for wrong reasons.

The Anima Mondi Museum in the Vatican carries thousands of original artifacts that were taken from societies throughout Canada by Catholic missionaries a century ago. The original peoples have long called for the restoration of artifacts to the homeland, and in 2022, Pope Francis pledged to return him to Canada recently.

But after his death in April and the election of Pope Liu XIV, the original leaders are now concerned about the promise of Pope Francis, he might die with him.

“It can be clouded under the carpet,” said Gloria Bell, a Canadian art historian, an author and assistant professor at McGill University, who has the ancestors of Metis. “These property was stolen from indigenous societies.”

In 1924, Pope Pius called the eleventh Miss Catholics worldwide to collect original artifacts and bring them to the Vatican. The following year, artifacts were shown as part of the missionary exhibition in the Vatican, a historical event promoted for residential schools and church missions around the world, which attracted about one million pilgrims and visitors.

The artifacts have since become a permanent group in the Vatican. Global News toured the Amina Monda exhibition with Bell, who was on a visit to Rome to give lectures and expand her research on the origins of artifacts.

The wide range of rare artifacts that are invaluable for skin boats include sealing and WAMPUM belt. Most elements are currently kept in storage, but dozens are offered. They are called the Vatican exhibition “gifts”.

Bell said: “The description of everything as a” gift “is just a false narration.

She referred to Australian indigenous activist Anthony Martin Fernando, who occupied an individual protest in St. Peter’s Square during the Vatican Missionary exhibition in 1925, when he distributed thousands of publications that denounced how the ether stole.

For his protest, Fernando was arrested and he was in prison.

Bell said: “Think about how to gain everything by missionaries who manage their genocide in indigenous communities in the twenties of the twentieth century, and it is one of the most aggressive absorptive periods in the early twentieth century, when these property was stolen from indigenous societies.”

“The indigenous children were held against their will in residential schools, then their materials were shown in this exhibition as” prizes for the Pope “.

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In 2022, a delegation of indigenous people from Canada was invited to Rome to meet Pope Francis and discuss reconciliation efforts. During their visit, like a good -intention, Vatican officials showed some artifacts.

“Seeing these elements made in hands, in many cases, said women from our great great grandmother, was very influential, was very deep,” said Victoria Forden, President of the National Council of Metis, who was part of the delegation.

“You can only feel that these elements in your heart should return home. They should be somewhere where our children, grandchildren, and societies can enjoy and think about them.”

In 2022, Pope Francis officially apologized to the survivors of residential schools and promised to return artifacts to their societies in Canada. After three years, it is not clear whether any progress has been made in the file.

“There is a lot of speech about the truth and reconciliation, and a lot of performance around it, but there has been no response yet,” Bell said.

The decision if the artifacts will now be re -pools will ultimately rest with the newly -elected Pope Liu Liu. Global News asked the Canadians who participated in the Conclave who chose him if they expected Pope Liu to fulfill his predecessor’s promise.

“The artifacts, the situation is something that I know is running. There is some reflection.” “Let’s let things reveal. But I am sure that (Pope Liu) will be interested in that.”

Purden, who returned to the Vatican city for the funeral of Pope Francis, said and filed the case again at a meeting with Vatican officials, that it is still optimistic that the artifacts will return to their societies.

She said: “What is an important symbol of reconciliation that returns to them when we can achieve this.”

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