User:Allyarice/Christianity and colonialism

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During the Age of Discovery, the Catholic Church inaugurated a significant effort to spread Christianity in the New World and to convert the Native Americans and other indigenous people. The missionary effort was a major part of, and a partial justification for, the colonial efforts of European powers such as Spain, France, and Portugal. The idea of European exploration and Christian expansion were synonymous with each other as European Christians' religious views and settlements in new lands were a way to convert the indigenous peoples. Christian Missions to the indigenous peoples ran hand-in-hand with the colonial efforts of Catholic nations. In the Americas and other colonies in Asia and Africa, most missions were run by religious orders such as the Augustinians, Franciscans, Jesuits, and Dominicans.

In both Portugal and Spain, religion was an integral part of the state, and Christianization was seen as having both secular and spiritual benefits. Missionaries would soon follow wherever these powers attempted to expand their territories or influence. Portuguese explorers would propose ideas of venturing into new territories to religious executives, which were approved based on the idea that "honor and glory will befall not only all of Christendom but also … this most sacred See of Peter."

The Spanish were the first of the future European countries to colonize North and South America. They came into the region predominantly through Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Florida. The Spaniards were committed, by Vatican decree, to convert their New World indigenous subjects to Catholicism. However, initial efforts (both docile and coerced) were often questionably successful, as the indigenous people added Catholicism into their longstanding traditional ceremonies and beliefs. '''An example of the successful integration of Catholicism into longstanding beliefs is the change in the Incan religion. Spaniards, especially, weaved Catholicism into Incan religious beliefs by altering the Andean religion to align more with Catholic teachings. This religious integration resulted from the idea that the Incan indigenous people were better Catholics than the Europeans who preached to them.''' The many native expressions, forms, practices, and art items could be considered idolatry and prohibited or destroyed by Spanish missionaries, military, and civilians. This included religious items, sculptures, and jewelry made of gold or silver, which were melted down before shipment to Spain. This shows the ideology of the Spanish conquerors, who were motivated by God, gold, and glory.

Although the Spanish did not impose their language to the extent they did their religion, some indigenous languages of the Americas evolved into replacing their native tongue with Spanish and lost to present-day tribal members. '''Priests who understood and could speak the indigenous languages were more efficient in religious conversion when they did evangelize in native languages. It was a collective effort by both groups to form a way of communication with each other as Quechua-speaking officials, and Andean officials learned the Spanish language.'''

In "Harvest of Souls: The Jesuit Missions and Colonialism in North America, 1632–1650", Carole Blackburn uses Jesuit Relations to shed light on the dialogue between Jesuit missionaries and the Native peoples of northeastern North America. In 1632 Jesuit missionary Paul Le Jeune, newly arrived at the fort of Quebec, wrote the first of the Relations to his superior in Paris, initiating a series of biannual mission reports that came to be known as the Jesuit Relations. In other writings, '''Jesuit missionaries in New France preaching to the Amerindians described the indigenous peoples as "savages" and tried to instill European standards of religion and civilization upon them. Jesuit missionaries attempted to culturally transform these people by creating confusion and disturbing their religious order and lifestyles.'''

First, Jesuit missionaries arrived in Kyushu in 1542 from Portugal and brought gunpowder with them. Francis Xavier arrived in 1550. '''Father Xavier was a pioneer in the Christian colonization of Japanese culture as he attempted to understand the Japanese language to build up fidelity in the new Japanese converts. The success of his evangelizing came from gathering individuals and families rather than mass preaching. These preachings lead to baptisms and successful missions in Japan. Jesuit missionaries were also favorable of Japan as a mission destination rather than other destinations due to the highly civilized society of the Japanese people. Father Xavier admired the Japanese for their 'houses and palaces,' 'civilization,' and its 'luxuries.

When Christian missionaries came to Africa, some native peoples were very hostile and not accepting of the missionaries in Africa. '''During the Scramble for Africa, there was a realization that African regions had valuable resources from which Western culture could profit. Christianity was a disguise for Western colonization in those areas to take valuable resources from the native African land. Despite the rush to Africa for its goods, in the book A History of Africa by J.D. Fage, he states, "Mid-and late-nineteenth-century Europeans were generally convinced that their Christian, scientific and industrial society was intrinsically far superior to anything that Africa had produced." The exploitation of natural resources can contribute to the hostility of African natives towards European colonizers.'''