To the Indios of the Amazon in Manaus (10 July 1980)

On 10 July 1980, the Holy Father addressed the Indios of the Amazon in Manaus, expressing the desire that their right to live in peace and security be recognized by authorities.

My beloved children.

First of all, my greeting is for all of you, those you represent here. Yours is a very welcome presence for the Pope on this trip he is making to Brazil, and now to his beloved Amazonia. He is making this journey especially to meet with you. What will I tell you? What can I tell you? I begin by repeating what you may have already heard your missionary friends tell you: that the Church and the Pope esteem you, they esteem you very much for who you are and for what you represent. You are human persons and "called to be of Jesus Christ" (cf. Rom 1:6); you are also children of God. The Church seeks to dedicate itself to you today, as blessed José de Anchieta, who was the pioneer in this sense, dedicated himself to your ancestors from the time of the discovery of Brazil, in a certain way the model of generations and generations of Jesuit, Salesian, Franciscan, Dominican, missionaries of the Holy Spirit or of the Precious Blood, Capuchins, Benedictines and many others, totally dedicated to you. With meritorious constancy they tried to communicate to you with the Gospel every possible help in view of your human promotion.

I entrust to the public authorities and to other responsible persons the wishes that I express wholeheartedly in this meeting with you in the name of the Lord: that you, whose ancestors were the first inhabitants of this land, having a particular right over it throughout the generations , the right to live there in peace and serenity is recognized, without the fear - a true nightmare - of being displaced for the benefit of others, but sure of a vital space which will be the basis not only for your survival, but also for the preservation of your identity as a human group, as a true people and nation. To this complex and thorny question I would like a thoughtful, timely, intelligent answer to be given, for the good of all. Thus the dignity and freedom of each of you as a human person and of all of you as a people and a nation will be respected and promoted. May God bless you in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

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