American Minute with Bill Federer
Greed versus the Gospel: An Examination of Indian Policies
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There is an age old struggle between two competing motivations:
GREED versus the GOSPEL.
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Throughout history, there have been those motivated by GREED, who:
- sold people into slavery;
- hung signs in their shops: "Help Wanted-No Irish Immigrants Need Apply";
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- British East India Company merchants who grew opium in India and imported it into China;
- "Since the U.S.-led invasion, Afghan opium production has increased 35-fold ... Overdoses from heroin, an opium derivative, and other opioids kill more than 27,000 people each year." (Huffington Post, May 5, 2017)
Greed is evident in political tactics:
- organizers engaging in "race-baiting" -- intentionally inciting racial tensions for political gain;
- politicians who create or capitalize on national crisis as an excuse for the government to usurp rights away from the people and set up a totalitarian dictatorships.
- people who vote for candidates promising entitlements, while advocating immorality and disregard for human life.
Scripture states in I Timothy 6:10 "For the love of money is the root of all evil."
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On the other hand, there have been those motivated by the GOSPEL, such as those who:
- dug wells in native villages;
- opened orphanages and medical clinics;
- founded hospitals, inoculated children;
- taught farming techniques;
- provided literacy programs;
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- donated money, food & clothes to help the poor;
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- provided disaster relief & emergency aid;
- fought to abolish slavery, forced marriages & sex-trafficking.
Matthew 25:44-45: "Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me."
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It is not a
hardware
problem but a
software
problem.
It is not the
color of one's skin
but the
thinking in one's brain.
In other words, it is not a situation where one race is good and another bad, as people of the same race can treat each other poorly.
It is a battle over thinking - what
behavioral software
is
guiding a person's action.
Is it
selfish greed
or the
caring love of the Gospel.
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Though many Spanish conquistadors were greedily searching for gold and glory, there were sincere Spanish missionaries, like
Bartolome' de Las Casas,
who were motivated by the love of the GOSPEL to minister and care for native peoples.
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Some of those motivated by the GOSPEL include:
Scottish Missionary to the Congo
David Livingstone,
who worked to end the Muslim slave trade in Africa;
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Scottish Missionary to Nigeria
Mary Slessor,
who promoted women's rights and the ending twin killing;
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Adoniram Judson,
missionary to Burma, who created a Burmese-English Dictionary;
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Baptist Missionary
Lottie Moon,
who helped famine victims in China;
Missionary to India
William Carey,
who helped end the practice of "sati"--the burning widows on their husband's ashes;
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George Muller,
who founded orphanages in the slums of England;
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Gladys Aylward,
missionary to China who helped end the binding of little girls' feet;
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Hudson Taylor,
who was a missionary and physician to the poor in China;
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Irish missionary
Amy Carmichael,
who worked with orphans in India;
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Olympic athlete
Eric Liddell,
who was a missionary and teacher among the extreme poor in war torn areas of North China;
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Jake DeShazer,
who was a prisoner-of-war turned missionary to war-torn Japan;
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Nate Saint and
Jim Elliot,
who were missionary martyrs to Ecuador's Auca Indians;
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and
Mother Teresa
of Calcutta, who said:
"I see Jesus in every human being. I say to myself, this is hungry Jesus, I must feed him. This is sick Jesus. This one has leprosy or gangrene; I must wash him and tend to him. I serve because I love Jesus."
Scripture states in James 1:27 "Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world." (NASB)
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Those motivated by the GOSPEL spread uniquely Judeo-Christian ideals like:
- women and children first;
- charity and philanthropy;
- tolerance, equality, honesty, marital fidelity;
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The competing motivations of GREED versus the GOSPEL can be observed most prominently when more advanced civilizations have clashed with less advanced civilizations.
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The Pulitzer Prize winning book
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
by Jared Diamond (1997), explained how the first humans were
hunter-gatherers,
foraging and scavenging for their daily food, pursuing wild animals and collecting wild plants.
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As time progressed, some advanced from
hunter-gather
to
domesticating crops and animals,
these being the first occupations: "tiller of the ground" and "keeper of flocks."
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As methods of food storage developed, these peoples advanced from spending all day hunting and gathering to now
developing other occupations, inventions, writing skills, bureaucracies, and eventually armies,
with which they
displaced less advanced hunter-gathers.
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Mesopotamia had the largest share of
domesticable crops and animals,
along with favorable climate conditions:
- Cereals: Wheat, Barley, Rye, Oats;
- Pulses: Lentil, Pea, Chickpea, Bean;
- Other: Almonds, Olives;
- Flax: a source of linseed oil and fiber for clothes, ropes, rugs, bedding, curtains, sails; and
- Animals: such as donkey, horse, camel, pig, chicken, cattle and oxen.
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Mesopotamia's
had a
head start
in
advancing civilization,
which spread into
Europe,
the
East
and
North Africa.
For the most part,
Asia
was limited to just rice.
Africa
had large animals, but, other than camels and elephants, their wild dispositions rendered them untamable, i.e., water buffalo, rhino, giraffe, zabra, and gazelle--who could run 60 miles an hour.
In
Australia,
varieties were scarce.
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The
American continent
had lots of wild game and fish, but only a small selection of domesticable crops, mainly: beans, squash, potatoes, and later maize-corn.
These were limited by climate and terrain from spreading north or south across equatorial central
America.
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America's
buffalo, llama, and alpaca, were difficult to domesticate, and dogs could only pull sleds.
The people of the
Americas
survived because there was a
plentiful abundance
of food which could be
hunted and gathered.
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When the Europeans immigrated to the New World, they were carrying with them 5,000 years of advancement in civilization, whereas the aboriginal inhabitants of the
Americas
were still predominantly hunting and gathering, living somewhere between the stone age and the bronze age, without even the invention of a usable wheel.
As a result, there was a civilization clash.
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The
American Indians
were caught in the clash of technological disparity, as well as in the struggle between GREED versus the GOSPEL.
The were often pulled into larger global conflicts.
For example, many Indians were persuaded to side with the French against the British during the French and Indian War.
When the French lost, the Indians also lost, and some of their land was confiscated.
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Many Indians were persuaded to side with the British during the Revolutionary War as Britain limited colonial westward expansion in 1763.
When the British lost, Indians again lost more land. (Treaty of Greenville, 1795)
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Many Indians were persuaded to side with the British during the War of 1812.
When the British lost, Indians lost more land. (Treaty of Fort Jackson, 1814)
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Catholic and Protestant missionaries were motivated by the GOSPEL to better the condition of Indians, such as:
- Isaac Jogues, S.J.,
- Fr. Charles Garnier, S.J.,
- Rene Goupil, S.J.,
- Anthony Daniel, S.J.,
- John de Brebeuf, S.J.,
- John Elliott,
- Pierre Marquette, S.J.,
- David Brainerd,
- Francis Makemie,
- John Stewart,
- Dr. Marcus & Narcissa Whitman,
- Pierre-Jean DeSmet, S.J.,
- Fr. François Blanchet,
- Fr. Modeste Demers,
- Brothers Jason & Daniel Lee,
- Henry & Eliza Spalding,
- William Gray,
- Elkanah & Mary Walker,
- David Leslie (founder of Salem, Oregon)
and
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On April 26, 1802,
President Jefferson
extended a 1787 act of Congress in which special lands were designated:
"For the sole use of Christian Indians and the Moravian Brethren missionaries for civilizing the Indians and promoting Christianity."
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After the Louisiana Purchase,
Jefferson
asked Congress to ratify a treaty with the
Kaskaskia Tribe,
negotiated by
William Henry Harrison
- the future 9th President.
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The
Kaskaskia Treaty,
DECEMBER 3, 1803, stated:
"And whereas the greater part of the said tribe have been baptized and received into the Catholic Church, to which they are much attached,
the United States will give annually, for seven years, one hundred dollars toward the support of a priest of that religion, who will engage to perform for said tribe the duties of his office, and also to instruct as many of their children as possible, in the rudiments of literature,
and the United States will further give the sum of three hundred dollars, to assist the said tribe in the erection of a church."
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In 1806 and 1807, two similar treaties were made with the
Wyandotte
and
Cherokee
tribes.
Jefferson
compiled
"The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth Extracted Textually from the Gospels in Greek, Latin, French and English."
It was first published in 1804, then again in 1816, with the intention of it being a book of ethics to help Christianize and civilize the Indians, reasoning that if they were given the entire Bible, they may emulate Old Testament stories of warfare.
Jefferson
wrote on the cover page:
"The Philosophy of Jesus of Nazareth--extracted from the account of his life and doctrines as given by Matthew, Mark, Luke & John--being an abridgement of the New Testament
for the use of the Indians unembarrassed with matters of fact or faith beyond the level of their comprehensions."
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When gold was discovered in Georgia, greedy settlers rushed in.
A Democrat controlled Congress hurriedly passed a big government solution -- the
Indian Removal Act of 1830,
signed by Democrat President.
Christian missionary
Jeremiah Evarts,
motivated by the Gospel, led the resistance to the Federal Government's removal plan, with many other missionaries being arrested by the State of Georgia and sentenced to years of hard labor.
Christian missionaries
Samuel Worcester
and
Elizur Butler
were arrested and their case defending the Indians went to the U.S. Supreme Court, where
Chief Justice John Marshall
ruled
in favor of the Cherokee
in
Worcester v. Georgia
(1832).
Jackson
ignored the decision, being convinced that removal was the only "wise and humane" way to prevent the Indians from "utter annihilation" by greedy, encroaching settlers.
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The Federal Government then moved to the
Indian Territory of Oklahoma
thousands of:
- Chickasaw,
- Choctaw,
- Muscogee-Creek,
- Seminole, and
- Cherokee.
Four thousand died on the
Trail of Tears.
(Treaty of Fort Armstrong, 1832; Treaty of Echota, 1835)
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President Jackson
stated in his Third Annual Message, December 6, 1831:
"The removal of the
Indians
beyond ... jurisdiction of the States does not place them beyond the reach of philanthropic aid and Christian instruction."
President Jackson
stated in a Message to Congress, January 20, 1830:
"According to the terms of an agreement between the United States and the
United Society of Christian Indians
the latter have a claim to an annuity of $400, commencing from the 1st of October, 1826, for which an appropriation by law for this amount ... will be proper."
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President Jackson
commented in his 2nd Annual Message, December 6, 1830:
"The
Indians
... gradually, under the protection of the Government and through the influence of good counsels, to cast off their savage habits and become an interesting, civilized, and Christian community."
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In the 1850's, the territory of the
Five Civilized Tribes
in the eastern Oklahoma had Gospel-motivated missions, schools and academies:
- Presbyterians' Dwight Mission (Cherokee, 1820, 1828);
- Chuala Female Academy (Choctaw, 1842);
- Tullahassee Manual Labor Boarding School (Cherokee, 1848);
- Congregational-American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions's Wheelock Academy (Choctaw, 1832);
- Methodist Episcopal Church's Quapaw Mission (1843); and
- Bloomfield Academy for Chickasaw Females (1852).
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President Lincoln
stated in his 3rd Annual Message, December 3, 1863:
"It is hoped that the treaties will result in ... permanent friendly relations with such of these
tribes
...
Duty to these wards of the Government demand our anxious and constant attention to their material well-being, to their progress in the arts of civilization,
and, above all, to that moral training which under the blessing of Divine Providence will confer upon them the elevated and sanctifying influences, hopes and consolations, of the Christian faith."
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Desperate Indians sometimes raided along the Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma borders, as did pro-slavery Missouri "bushwackers" and anti-slavery Kansas "jayhawkers."
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Some Indians sided with the Confederacy during the Civil War.
When the South lost, Indians lost more land.
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Eventually the Democrat policy of Indians REMOVAL was replaced with the Republican policy of RESERVATIONS.
To pressure nomadic tribes into settling on reservations, as well as to make way for profitable railroads, millions of buffalo were unfortunately killed off.
Once Indians were on reservations, oil and minerals were found there.
Again, greedy politicians soon took land from the
Indians,
such as in the Teapot Dome Scandal.
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President Grant's "Quaker Policy"
removed entrepreneurs from being
Indian agents
and replaced them with missionaries, stating in his First Annual Message, December 6, 1869:
"I have attempted a new policy toward these wards of the nation ...
The
Society of Friends (Quakers)
is well known as having succeeded in living in peace with the
Indians
in the early settlement of Pennsylvania ...
They are known for their opposition to all strife, violence, and war, and are generally noted for their strict integrity and fair dealings.
These considerations induced me to give the management of a few reservations of
Indians
to them ... The result has proven most satisfactory."
In 1869, the
Board of Indian Commissioners
noted in its annual report:
"The religion of our blessed Savior is ... the most effective agent for the civilization of any people."
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President Grant
stated in his 2nd Annual Message, December 5, 1870:
"Reform in ...
Indian affairs
has received the special attention ...
The experiment of making it a missionary work was tried with a few agencies given to the denomination of
Friends (Quakers),
and has been found to work most advantageously ...
Indian agencies being civil offices, I determined to give all the agencies to such religious denominations as had heretofore established missionaries among the
Indians,
and perhaps to some other denominations ... to Christianize and civilize the
Indians,
and to train him in the arts of peace."
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President Grant
stated to Congress, January 1, 1871:
"Civilized Indians
of the country should be encouraged in establishing for themselves forms of Territorial government compatible with the Constitution ...
This is the first indication of the
aborigines
desiring to adopt our form of government, and it is highly desirable that they become self-sustaining, self-relying, Christianized, and civilized."
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President Grant
stated in his 3rd Annual Message, December 4, 1871:
"The policy pursued toward the
Indians
has resulted favorably ...
Through the exertions of the various societies of Christians ... many tribes of
Indians
have been induced to settle upon reservations, to cultivate the soil, to perform productive labor of various kinds, and to partially accept civilization ...
I recommend liberal appropriations to carry out the
Indian peace policy,
not only because it is humane, Christian-like, and economical, but because it is right."
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Oklahoma had missions run by:
- Baptists,
- Methodists,
- Episcopalians,
- Presbyterians,
- Mennonites,
- Quakers,
- Moravians,
- Nazarene,
- Catholics, and others.
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Mennonites
had a mission among the
Comanches
at Post Oak Mission and at Colony.
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Catholics had missions in the
Potawatomi Nation
at Sacred Heart Abbey, at Anadarko on the
Kiowa-Comanche-Apache Reservation,
and in north central Oklahoma among the
Osage, Ponca, and Otoe.
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In 1884, one of the first missionaries to the
Yupik Indians
in Alaska was
John Henry Killbuck,
great-grandson of
Lenape Chief Gelelemend,
who in 1778 made the first Indian Treaty with the United States and later was converted to Christianity by
German Moravian missionaries.
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President Cleveland
issued the Proclamation respecting Church property in Alaska, November 14, 1896:
"Whereas ... the Russian Empire ceded to the US the Territory of Alaska ... the churches which have been built in the ceded territory ... shall remain the property of such members of the Greek Oriental Church ...
The Cathedral Church of St. Michael ... The Church of the Resurrection ... called the Kalochian Church, situated near the battery number at the palisade separating the city from the Indian village .... Three timber houses ... for lodging of priests. Four lots of ground belonging to the parsonages."
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In the 1871
Indian Appropriations Act,
Indians officially made legal wards of the state, an idea first introduced in the 1831 case of
Cherokee Nation v. Georgia.
This meant that U.S. government no longer needed to make treaties with tribal leaders, and through Federal government assistance, tended to create a crippling dependency.
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In 1924,
Republican President Calvin Coolidge
signed the
Indian Citizen Act
granting citizenship to Native Americans born in the United States.
In 1927,
President Coolidge
was "adopted" into the
Sioux tribe
at Fort Yates in North Dakota.
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As a boy,
Herbert Hoover
had spent several months living on the
Osage Indian Reservation
in Oklahoma Territory.
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After
Hoover
became a multi-millionaire in the mining industry, he organized the feeding of Europe after World War I.
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Republican President Hoover
chose as his
Vice-President Charles Curtis,
the nation's
first Native American Vice-President,
from the Kaw tribe in Kansas.
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Hoover
reorganized and provided increased funding to the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
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The next President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, had John Collier serve as Commissioner of Indian Affairs, 1933-45.
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The son of a successful Atlanta businessman, John Collier pressured Congress to pass the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934.
This preserved Indian identity by restoring native lands, improving reservation medical services, and promoting development of business opportunities for Indians.
The two competing threads of human motivation,
Greed
versus the
Gospel,
can be traced through history, and the struggle between them still continues to this day.
Jesus explained, let the
wheat
and
tares
grow together until the harvest. (Matthew 13:30)
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Some individuals of American Indian ancestry who have become well-known include:
- Will Rogers: 1879-1935, cowboy, actor, humorist, and newspaper columnist, of Cherokee descent.
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- Jim Thorpe: 1887-1953, Olympic athlete, of Sac and Fox descent.
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- Oral Roberts: 1918-2009, evangelist who reached millions, broadcast television pioneer, founder of Oral Roberts University, of Cherokee and Choctaw descent.
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- Navajo Code Talkers: Chester Nez, Willson Price, William McCabe, Teddy Draper, Sr., Carl Gorman, Peter MacDonald, Kee Etsicitty, Samuel Tom Holiday, Joe Vandever, Keith Little, John Kinsel, Samuel Tso, together with over 400 Navajo sent vital communications during World War II that the Japanese were unable to decode, allowing for the success of major Marine assaults.
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- Chuck Norris: b.1940, actor, martial artist, film producer, of Cherokee descent.
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- John Bennett Herrington: b.1958, first American Indian Astronaut, launched into space with NASA on November 23, 2002, of Chickasaw descent.
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Schedule Bill Federer for informative interviews & captivating PowerPoint presentations: 314-502-8924
wjfederer@gmail.com
American Minute is a registered trademark of William J. Federer. Permission is granted to forward, reprint, or duplicate, with acknowledgment.
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