In a quiet demonstration during a papal Mass on July 28 in Quebec, protesters marched in front of the altar carrying a large banner that read: “Rescind the doctrine.”

The protesters left the church peacefully, but their demand—for an explicit repudiation of Catholic support for colonization—has been a theme of the papal visit to Canada.

During the era of colonization, papal decrees gave Spain and Portugal the right to claim territory in the Western hemisphere. Much later, in 1823 the US Supreme Court referred to the “Doctrine of Discovery,” which gave Europeans ownership of lands that they “discovered” in the New World.” This is the “doctrine” that the demonstrators want the Church to repudiate.

The Catholic bishops of Canada issued a rejection of the Doctrine of Discovery in 2016. Church spokesmen have indicated that a Vatican statement is likely soon.