In Dr. Foreman’s American Literature Two class, we are discussing Mark Twain’s portrayal of the church in Huckleberry Finn and are dealing with their choice to ignore the problem of slavery or, as was more often the case, being supporters of such discrimination. How could the church be so blind? Couldn't they see that God champions men as being equal, no matter their station, rank, race, background or heritage?
Malachi 2:10 comes to mind which questions "Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? Why then are we faithless to one another...?" Or, more often used and more explicit, there is Galatians 3:28 which claims that "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." The arguments were there in Scripture. Now that slavery is only practiced behind closed doors, mainstream Christianity no longer sees it as being a part of the Christian life.
Dr. Foreman’s challenge was this: "What is it today that we are completely overlooking and which future generations will look back on and call us fools and hypocrites for accepting or even allowing to happen in our world?"
This question has many answers, all of which are legitimate. The first that comes to my mind however is the treatment of Native Peoples who lived on this land that we now call ours. We claim that it was our manifest destiny (our God-given right) to take the land and use it as we wish. We mainly starved them out, taking the natural resources they relied on and cutting them off. We told them where to live, how to live, and with whom to live. We discriminated against them yet were angered because they wouldn't join our societies; they wouldn’t give up their languages, customs, or children.
It is important to note that there were Christians who worked to help them. They were one of the biggest reasons that the United States army didn't simply "exterminate the lice,” as so many of them phrased their desire to kill every last one of the native peoples because they were "inconvenient." There has also been church involvement on the reservations since then, working to provide basic needs that the government does not provide as promised and some even work to reconcile them with those who took their land without destroying what culture the bravest tribes have been able to retain. We’ve all heard these stories before in history classes, TIPS classes, and community development classes. But, have we bothered to find out what’s happening now?
Where is the church at large? There are atrocities all around the world that are legitimate, even necessary work of the church. However, this is right here, often literally in our backyards (or are we in their front yard?). And yet, as I have personally discovered, people who live less than thirty minutes away from some of the largest reservations in the United States, don't even know they are there, much less the churches in those towns.
The sad thing is that most of you who read this will simply figure that I'm “going off the handle” and that things aren't really that bad. “Third world country? Really? That's pushing it.” I would challenge you to do research in academic sources. Look at the journals and periodicals that tribes send out. Study the treaties that were signed and see why tribes have "unfair fishing rights" and why they make "ridiculous demands of the government that they have no right to make." I challenge you to even be able to find a single one of those treaties, much less one that you can read (The penmanship alone is difficult to decipher, much less the complicated political wording). And, if you can’t find sources of information, doesn’t that also prove my point?
How can we as the Church overlook about 4.3 million people in desperate straits who live right here beside us? I do not have all the answers. I don’t even have many answers. However, informed discussion is better than silence, is it not?
Malachi 2:10 comes to mind which questions "Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? Why then are we faithless to one another...?" Or, more often used and more explicit, there is Galatians 3:28 which claims that "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." The arguments were there in Scripture. Now that slavery is only practiced behind closed doors, mainstream Christianity no longer sees it as being a part of the Christian life.
Dr. Foreman’s challenge was this: "What is it today that we are completely overlooking and which future generations will look back on and call us fools and hypocrites for accepting or even allowing to happen in our world?"
This question has many answers, all of which are legitimate. The first that comes to my mind however is the treatment of Native Peoples who lived on this land that we now call ours. We claim that it was our manifest destiny (our God-given right) to take the land and use it as we wish. We mainly starved them out, taking the natural resources they relied on and cutting them off. We told them where to live, how to live, and with whom to live. We discriminated against them yet were angered because they wouldn't join our societies; they wouldn’t give up their languages, customs, or children.
It is important to note that there were Christians who worked to help them. They were one of the biggest reasons that the United States army didn't simply "exterminate the lice,” as so many of them phrased their desire to kill every last one of the native peoples because they were "inconvenient." There has also been church involvement on the reservations since then, working to provide basic needs that the government does not provide as promised and some even work to reconcile them with those who took their land without destroying what culture the bravest tribes have been able to retain. We’ve all heard these stories before in history classes, TIPS classes, and community development classes. But, have we bothered to find out what’s happening now?
Where is the church at large? There are atrocities all around the world that are legitimate, even necessary work of the church. However, this is right here, often literally in our backyards (or are we in their front yard?). And yet, as I have personally discovered, people who live less than thirty minutes away from some of the largest reservations in the United States, don't even know they are there, much less the churches in those towns.
The sad thing is that most of you who read this will simply figure that I'm “going off the handle” and that things aren't really that bad. “Third world country? Really? That's pushing it.” I would challenge you to do research in academic sources. Look at the journals and periodicals that tribes send out. Study the treaties that were signed and see why tribes have "unfair fishing rights" and why they make "ridiculous demands of the government that they have no right to make." I challenge you to even be able to find a single one of those treaties, much less one that you can read (The penmanship alone is difficult to decipher, much less the complicated political wording). And, if you can’t find sources of information, doesn’t that also prove my point?
How can we as the Church overlook about 4.3 million people in desperate straits who live right here beside us? I do not have all the answers. I don’t even have many answers. However, informed discussion is better than silence, is it not?
No comments :
Post a Comment