So you can learn something on the last day of class...

I have risen here, I who I am the voice of Christ in the desert of this island, and therefore no one of you agrees with what I have said; but yet with your heart, you hear it; this voice will be to you the newest, the harshest and the most lasting voice that you have ever heard, more dreadful than you ever thought to hear: all of you are in mortal sin and in sin you live, by the cruelty and tyranny by which you abuse these innocent people. Decide now: By what right and by what justice have you placed these Indians in such a cruel and horrible servitude? By what authority have you waged so hateful a war on these people who were living in their calm and peaceful lands, where you have consumed infinite numbers of them, with death and ruin? Are these not men? They do not have rational souls? Are you not obliged to love them as much as you love your very selves? Do you not understand this? Do you not feel this? ... Know for certain that, in the state in which you are now, you cannot be saved any more than the Moors or Turks who lack, and do not want, the faith of Jesus Christ.... Antonio de Montesinos, preached in 1511

Yesterday was my last day of History I. This means I should know what happened basically from the death of Jesus to 1700. Well, at least I definitely know more than I brought to the classroom on the first day.

Our last day wrapped up with a look at the beginnings of colonialism and its relationship to the church. My professor went out on a very big limb for a Protestant and said that the biggest shift in the history of Christianity in the world was not the Reformation (gasp!) but colonialism. I think I tend to agree. The other salient point on this topic he wanted to make sure that we left the room with was that even at the very beginnings of colonialism, conquest and all the atrocities, both in and out the church, that went along with these movements--there was theological debate. There were people (mostly men because of course that was who was allowed to debated theology at the time) who from day one of the whole debacle argued against the mistreatment, dehumanization, enslavement , and genocide of native peoples. There were religious people preaching that God created everyone endowed with the same rights as people, regardless of whether or not a person acknowledged God. The legitimization that the church provided for colonialism was that if a community was not Christian, they did not have the same rights to dominion (over themselves and their land) as the Christians did (so the Christians could forcibly remove them, forcibly convert them, or whatever). But, not everyone bought into this--some even used their place in the pulpit to fight against these ideas. And in this I find hope in our bloody history.

I am new at this whole preaching thing and am still not sure what I think about it. I still wonder if I can be a pastor. But, when I see the courage, the strength and the Spirit in the voices of the prophets throughout history who have fought for the most vulnerable in the name of God, I hope that if and when my time comes, I can do the same. I wonder if my time is already here and I am missing it....