 Some American bishops interpreted "In supremo" as condemning only the slave trade and not slavery itself.Bishop John England of Charleston actually wrote several letters to the Secretary of State under President Van Buren explaining that the Pope, in "In supremo", did not condemn slavery but only the slave trade.In "In supremo apostolatus", Pope Gregory XVI admonished and adjured "all believers in Christ, of whatsoever condition, that no one hereafter may dare unjustly to molest Indians, Blacks, or other men of this sort;...or to reduce them to slavery...".