Pope Francis called on governments to recognize the dignity and rights of indigenous people around the world. The Pope encouraged people to learn from the wisdom of aboriginal peoples when he received a delegation from the Forum of Indigenous Peoples in the Vatican, which is being held these days at the headquarters of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) on 10 February.
“I ask the governments to recognize the indigenous peoples of the whole world , with their cultures, languages, traditions, and spiritualities, and to respect their dignity and rights, with the awareness that the wealth of our great human family consists precisely in its diversity ”, indicated the Pope.
In addition, the Holy Father stressed that “aboriginal cultures are not to be converted to a modern culture, but rather to be respected.”
Later, the Pope acknowledged that “unfortunately, we are witnessing an unprecedented social and environmental crisis” for which he warned that if we really want to “improve the planet we live on, profound changes in lifestyles are essential .”
“We should listen more to indigenous peoples and learn from their way of life,” the Pope asked.
Along these lines, the Holy Father added that “we cannot continue to greedily devour natural resources.”
Lastly, Pope Francis invited them to learn from the wisdom of the indigenous “because it is not an encyclopedic wisdom” but consists of “the wisdom of seeing, listening and touching in everyday life “.