The Church and Slavery

Last night I was having a conversation with a lovely lady about the consistency of the Magisterium on the topic of slavery. Often times we hear that the holy Roman Church has changed its position on various issues, and she was curious whether that was the case with this issue.

"We, who, though unworthy, exercise on earth the power of our Lord and seek with all our might to bring those sheep of His flock who are outside into the fold committed to our charge, consider, however, that the Indians are truly men and that they are not only capable of understanding the Catholic Faith but, according to our information, they desire exceedingly to receive it. Desiring to provide ample remedy for these evils, We define and declare by these Our letters... the said Indians and all other people who may later be discovered by Christians, are by no means to be deprived of their liberty or the possession of their property, even though they be outside the faith of Jesus Christ; and that they may and should, freely and legitimately, enjoy their liberty and the possession of their property; nor should they be in any way enslaved; should the contrary happen, it shall be null and have no effect. By virtue of Our apostolic authority We define and declare by these present letters... that the said Indians and other peoples should be converted to the faith of Jesus Christ by preaching the word of God and by the example of good and holy living."-Pope Paul III, Sublimus Dei

The above quotation from Pope Paul III is a solemn condemnation of the practice of enslavement of innocent men and women. Not only does he exercise his supreme teaching authority, he renders any attempt by on the part of Christians utterly null and void (temporal authority). There are however instances in history where the holy Roman Church permitted slavery.

"Fearing lest strangers induced by covetousness should sail to those parts, and desiring to usurp to themselves the perfection, fruit, and praise of this work, or at least to hinder it, should therefore, either for the sake of gain or through malice, carry or transmit iron, arms, wood used for construction, and other things and goods prohibited to be carried to infidels or should teach those infidels the art of navigation, whereby they would become more powerful and obstinate enemies to the king and infante, and the prosecution of this enterprise would either be hindered, or would perhaps entirely fail, not without great offense to God and great reproach to all Christianity, to prevent this.... grant[ed] among other things free and ample faculty to the aforesaid King Alfonso -- to invade, search out, capture, vanquish, and subdue all Saracens and pagans whatsoever, and other enemies of Christ wheresoever placed, and the kingdoms, dukedoms, principalities, dominions, possessions, and all movable and immovable goods whatsoever held and possessed by them and to reduce their persons to perpetual slavery, and to apply and appropriate to himself and his successors the kingdoms, dukedoms, counties, principalities, dominions, possessions, and goods, and to convert them to his and their use and profit..."-Pope Alexander VI, Romanus Pontifex

In instances, such as the one above, the Bishop of Rome sanctioned the use of slavery as a punishment for Christians or Muslims who aided non-Christian states in colonizing or impeding the colonization by Catholic states of the New World. I suppose Pope Gregory XVI (In Supremo) really put it best, when he expressed it to simply be an issue of justice.

"We, by apostolic authority, warn and strongly exhort in the Lord faithful Christians of every condition that no one in the future dare bother unjustly, despoil of their possessions, or reduce to slavery Indians, Blacks or other such peoples."

After all, how often do we see "community service" render as a penalty for criminal offenses, men and women picking up trash along a highway with a shotgun toting office hovering over them?