A Timorese scholar, Josh Trindade, currently pursuing a PhD at the Indigenous Knowledge Institute, Australia has issued a public demand for Pope Francis to apologize for the Catholic Church\u2019s historical and ongoing impact on Timorese culture and spirituality. In an open letter dated September 4, Trindade asserts that the Church’s presence in Timor-Leste has profoundly affected the mind, nation’s cultural and spiritual identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a recent interview with Neon Metin via WhatsApp, Trindade explained that the timing of his letter is an effort to bring long-silent issues to light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe historical injustices perpetrated by the Church have been ignored for far too long,\u201d Trindade said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
“These issues have never been publicly addressed, and many concerns raised in my letter have yet to reach the Catholic Church leadership in Timor-Leste officially.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trindade, a PhD candidate at Melbourne University\u2019s Indigenous Knowledge Institute, elaborated on his past interactions with Church officials. In 2017, he participated in a seminar hosted by the late Bishop Basilio Nascimento, where he discussed the concepts of \u2018Maromak\u2019 (God) and \u2018Lulik\u2019 (Sacred), and how the Timorese have endured mental oppression from the Church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis oppression extends beyond cultural and traditional practices to undermine Timorese concepts of life, faith, and spirituality,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In his open letter, Trindade criticizes the Church for appropriating Timorese terminology, such as “Maromak” and “Maromak Oan,” and integrating these terms into Christian doctrine to represent a Christian-masculine-patriarchal deity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBy appropriating these terms, the Church has altered and overshadowed the indigenous belief system, erasing the original meanings and contexts. The Church further compounded this issue by labeling Timorese people as ‘godless savages,’ a narrative that persists to this day,\u201d Trindade writes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trindade also highlights what he views as hypocrisy regarding the term \u201cLulik.\u201d He points out that while Church leaders admonish the congregation to reject Lulik and associate it with evil, they themselves use titles like “Amu Lulik” or “Nai Lulik,” which carry sacred connotations. \u201cThis contradiction underscores the Church’s deep-seated hypocrisy,\u201d he argues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The letter also addresses the forced assimilation practices of the Church during colonial times. Trindade explains that the Church rejected indigenous names as \u201cuncivilized\u201d or \u201csavage\u201d and pressured people to abandon their ancestral names in favour of those deemed acceptable by colonial and Church authorities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trindade believes that Pope Francis\u2019s visit offers a significant opportunity to address these issues publicly. He calls on the Church to acknowledge its role in these historical injustices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis issue originated in the time of our elders, who had no chance to question or counter the Church’s actions. This led to mental oppression of our ancestors. The Holy Father’s visit is a crucial moment to discuss these matters openly, rather than limiting our debates to social media, where they may go unheard,\u201d Trindade said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Josh Trindade is now a PhD candidate and studying indigenous knowledge at the Indigenous Knowledge Institute at Melbourne University, Australia. His thesis will be focusing on Lulik and Indigenous Ways of Being in Timor-Leste. He is set to become the first person to earn a PhD in indigenous knowledge globally.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A Timorese scholar, Josh Trindade, currently pursuing a PhD at the Indigenous Knowledge Institute, Australia has issued a public demand for Pope Francis to apologize for the Catholic Church\u2019s historical and ongoing impact on Timorese culture and spirituality. In an open letter dated September 4, Trindade asserts that the Church’s presence in Timor-Leste has profoundly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":19176,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"amp_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19172","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t