 Nonetheless, Catholic missionaries such as the Jesuits, who also owned slaves, worked to alleviate the suffering of Native American slaves in the New World.Debate about the morality of slavery continued throughout this period, with some books critical of slavery being placed on the Index of Forbidden Books by the Holy Office between 1573 and 1826.Capuchin missionaries were excommunicated for calling for the emancipation of black slaves in the Americas, though were later reinstated when the Holy Office under Pope Innocent XI sided with them rather than the bishop which excommunicated them.