Isn't it sick that early Christian settlers in America tortured the Native Americans unless they converted?

Question

Didn't the Christians come here to escape persecution? Then why did they do the same thing to the Native Americans? It doesn't make sense to me, and I find it to be very un-Jesus like.

What about the slaughtering of the Sioux Indians at Wounded Knee?

Answer 1

unfortunately this is in the history of christianity. at the beginning of christianity in europe many germanic tribes were forced to choose between converting or being killed (for example the saxons). but i find it as sick that nowadays some missionaries convert people relying on their poverty and hunger, while they should help everybody regardless of their faith, and not as a prize for conversion

Answer 2

The torturing of Native Americans started with the Spanish Conquistador's. The priests read a long dissertation to the native peoples-in Spanish no less- that said in effect convert or die. Since the native peoples had yet to take an SSL class they died and those that didn't were made slaves
The myth of the Pilgrims coming to the Americas to escape religious persecution comes with one often overlooked caveat:
The Pilgrims were seeking religious freedom only for themselves, not for others
What the English and the Spanish had in common was the belief that native peoples were inferior in all ways and as "civilized Christian people" they were obligated by both Cross and Crown to show them the light.
It is still going on today - there are missionary's out there who honestly believe that the world needs to be converted ,because the regardless of how a native person may be living, being Christian will ultimately improve their lives. Arrogant isn't it?

Answer 3

You can thank the Spanish for the original atrocities against the native people that resided in Florida and on the lower east coast... But your "question" has a negative connotation.. Most history textbooks lead kids to think that ALL settlers from Europe were evil and killed, raped, maimed, etc.. the native population.. When in fact this just isn't so.. Yes, it is true that some settlers did actively commit attrocities but just as many did not.. Many English settlers were concerned about staying alive and getting food to stay alive.. At first the indians supported them but eventually the numbers of people grew to more than the indian villages could accomodate.. Leading some colonists to take whatever they needed to survive. But not ALL...

A classic example of an enduring cooperational relationship between Natives and Europeans is the French and Indian relationship that endured for over a hundred years.. The only problem with other Europeans is their STYLE of Christianity.. Christianity like the Spanish practiced(Roman Catholocism) emphasized spreading the religion across the globe.. Not ALL Christian denominations were like this..

"Torturing" probably DID NOT occur.. At least in the mainstream.. Most natives that were killed were a result of a lack of immunity to European diseases. (And an affinity for alcohol played an important role.)

Answer 4

I agree with your comments. I am a Native American. Some of my ancesters walked the trail of tears. We were here first, I get really tired of hearing other ethnic groups boo hoo about the way they were treated. What about the people living here first? My people are still not being treated fairly by the US govt. Long ago or trible status was stripped from us. We as a tribe have been fighting to get it back. We have been turned down. The govt. doesn't want to pay us. We as a people would be elligible for benefits, which have been denied. Over 100 yrs. now we have been having a family reunion. I am a member of the Miami Indians Of Indian.

Answer 5

Dear JB_HR2007:

Its not just the settlers of this country that have done this. Look back into history, the Spanish Inquisition hundreds of thousands of Jewish and Arabic people died with the Crusades, and in Spain it was a living terror of confess and be put to death or don't confess and you'll be found guilty and put to death, a real loose loose situation there, unless you're running the Spanish Inquisition then you get everything the accused person owned.
Though its not just the Christian faith. In old testament days the Jewish people were always being put into bondage either by the Egyptians or the Babylons or whom ever could raise a blood sword, and say God was on his side and its sadly still happening today.
I mean even in the turn of the last thousand years El Sid of Spain drove the Muslims out of Spain and killed thousands of them also.
Its not God's law which makes man kill man for him, its man's greed to poses what his brother owns to be richer in this world and poorer in the next.
God's perfect love be with you:
Stephan Gerard Janosik.

Answer 6

I was born on an indian reservation in Montana,, my great grandparents and others of that era attended school at a catholic school, the priests and nuns were instructed to force the indians to give up there language, their beliefs and be "good little catholics"...i did not go to a catholic school, but to this day i look at catholicism just like any other cult, especially after reading about the crusades..organized religion is the cause of so much war and death and should be outlawed in all countries and cultures,,let people make up their own minds about a higher power...

Answer 7

I think that the ones that tortured because of religious reasons were mainly the Catholics, and the colonists that escaped for religious reasons were also escaping the reaches of the Catholic church. Many of those that tried to convert the natives were Spanish missionaries, but the colonists and natives still had a rocky relationship because they pushed the natives off of their land. But catholics using force to convert natives was not just in colonial times. My mother is native and in her life time catholic missionaries came to her reserve and forced the natives to convert- they even entered the schools and would hit the children with rulers when they spoke in their native tongue. Not only did they try to force conversion they also tried to strip them of their culture.

Answer 8

Somewhere in the history of every religion there are acts of injustices, mistreatment and abuses. Christians are no different from any other religion. Remember, RELIGIONS are man-made, and as such are fallible and prone to mistakes and abuses... like all religions, regardless of the propaganda spewed by the fanatics in each and every religion.

Some groups complain that this or that ethnic group are complaining unnecesarily instead of joining forces to put an end to abuse and discrimination and all the injustices... they've fallen victims to the ploy of being divided and conquered... ! Just because some groups have suffered perhaps longer or more STILL doesn't make it right!

Answer 9

I'm not aware of the specific facts that you mentioned, but the general idea of torturing people to convert to Christianity has a long tradition, so I wouldn't be surprised if it happened here. You need to study your religious history. You will find that Jesus and Christianity are two entirely different things. Jesus was co-opted by Paul and subsequent Roman church leaders to create a religion to unify the Roman Empire. Subsequently, church theologians argued that it was perfectly OK to massacre entire tribes and villages if the people failed to accept the religion. Christianity is a bloodthirsty religion that at one time burnt people at the stake for having doubts about religion or for doing or saying anything that was "unpatriotic".

Answer 10

OK your right Ad I have another why Why do we cater to some tribes now and let others live in poverty
My husbands family walk the Trail of Tears and yet in some places it really has not changed that much in their lives