I am not sure if it is required that we post about The Mission, but i am thinking about it. The movie illustrated the one of the very things that bother me most about religion (Christianity to be specific in this case). Religion is something that i assume is suppose to be a personal connection with a higher power, and that connection i am sure vaires within each individual, but how does one go about sharing that connection when in reality no one can feel what that individual feels the way they feel it. Chrisianity is especially good at trying to share/spread this connection with a higher power upon other people. This is always something that i looked down upon and found it irritating. I call this act 'fishing'. Fishing for people to listen and to accept that they too can have the same uplifting connection with a higher power. This spread of religion in this way is disgusting in my eyes, and predadory to an extent.
The movie The Mission was a prime example of fishing for people. The jezawits (i KNOW that is not spelled right!) appeared to have stumbled upon a civilization "above the fours" who were living and had not been influenced by progressions of society going on, i guess, under the fours. (was the "fours" referring to the waterfalls?). It was illustrated in the beginning of the film that this civilization appeared "barbaric" and "uncivlized" and as a community their greatest threat was the growing profitability of the slave market taking place under the fours. This is where my problem with Christian fishing became illustrated. The movie percieved this community as an unstable community who needed to be saved from their own simple existance. Someone, a prophet perhaps, was truly needed to go up into their jungle home and make them aware of the fact that they were in fact in need of being saved. (the prophet also in this movie that was couragous enough to climb the dangerous waterfall barefoot and risk his life to "save" these people was of course a white (heterosexual?) male. and of course he would be, Jesus was supposedly white. right?)
Their "need to be saved" puts them in a situation that the jezawitts view as vulnerable, there for the "uncivililzed" community is weak and easy to take advantage of. This is what the Christian religion i have observed is where how they prey upon people. Finding people in weak states, whether emotionally or physically or any other, and taking advantage of their simple need for positive human interaction.
The community did change and maybe to some "progressed" to a better living situation, but how can anyone judge what is best for them? People, including the jezawits in the movie, have a very narrow view of what it means to be civilized, for what they know of civilization is all created in white heterosexual norms. Perhaps this community above the fours was civilized, they just had a different definition of what being civilized means.
As the village became more "civilized" in the white definition of the term, the community seemed rather akward. The people of this community before the jezawitts came wore very little clothing, but as the white civilization progressed they began covering up more and more. The scene in which the high powered authority figure (i think he was the King, but never quite got exactly what his title was) is taking a tour of the Mission above the fours as he walked into the church the people in the church were all wearing white tshirts and covering themselves. This illustrated the progression into white norms, for good christians dont show off their naked bodies in public. It was rather akward seeing and hearing them sing these christian songs. It seemed like it just didnt fit. Christianity was like a plague that intruded upon this community and was changing every aspect of these peoples prior existance. This bothered me.
Then in the end what happened? To be honest, Christianity is what killed these people. Would the King have ever wandered up above the fours to learn of such an existance if the jezawitts hadnt invited him? The villian (the selfish rich slave trader whom was seeing the mission properties with the king) also had the opportunity to see these Missions which even more enhanced the idea that these people made good workers, as illustrated by their elaborate and profitable missions, which just fueled his desire to claim/hunt these people for slavery and turn a mighty profit for him. Christianity did nothing for these people who had been living above the fours, maybe they did learn some simple social skills and had some fun at times, but as far as Christianity as a saving mechanism, it was in fact the opposite, the reason for their death.
and DeNiro was pretty sexy huh!!!
liz
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I’m glad that you posted. I too was thinking about the film and it was very difficult for me to watch in many aspects. I think you know that I was raised Southern Baptist (a very hell fire and brimstone kind of religion) and then I moved to the Lutheran Church which is closer to Catholic traditions. So I was really indoctrinated by these two faiths. Both of them very much thought it was important to share the word of God. I did love going to church and I enjoyed the lessons and the fellowship. It wasn’t until I started going to college and started really questioning things, did I become really skeptical about the teachings. (Oh and of course when my I got divorced, and my fiancé took his life, I was pretty much shunned). But even my daughter caught on at a very early age about the discrepancies and the judgments that were prevalent within the church. When she was taking notes one Sunday on the sermon for her confirmation, they were speaking of Homosexuals and my best friend is a gay man who loves Samantha dearly and has known her for many years. She asked me if Tim was going to hell, because that is exactly what the Pastor was saying. She was so pissed. Anyhow, I’ve digressed and I need to get back to responding to your post. Its just I’m so passionate about this topic!
While I was raised in a traditional church setting, I’ve always had the question in the back of my mind about indigenous peoples and not only would they not go to heaven, but would they indeed go to hell? This made utterly no sense to me. Because if we are to believe the bible, then it says that we are all made in the image of God. Ok, so does that mean only some of us are made in the image of God? If we can read and write, then we are made in the image of God? Oh, wait it must mean that if we are Christians then we are made in the image of God? My God! No pun was intended, but isn’t that the most ludicrous thing one has ever heard. If I stop and think about it, which I typically don’t, I really get pissed off about it.
Not only are we all to be created in the image of God, but as Christians we are not to stand in judgment of others. I’m going to go get my Bible right now, so I can quote some scripture! I’m back. “Do not judge or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, “Let me take the speck out of your eye” when all the time there is a plank in you own eyes? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye. (Matthew 7: 1-5). See?
What I find very annoying and frustrating about each organized religion is that they take their text (which is always a Holy text) and isolate parts of it and then make a case for their belief based on that portion of the text. It irritates me to no end. I can’t find it in myself to subscribe to that kind of ideology any more. I really can’t. But the problem I have is that this is all that I know and until I search and find something that fits me, I can’t as Dr. Strobel says, “throw the baby out with the bath water”.
This movie reminded me of another movie I watched this week called “Trinkets and Beads” as the missionaries came into the Hunari tribe and colonized them and then they had big oil companies come in and traumatize the tribe even more by polluting their land and their bodies.
I am in total agreement with you Liz that Christianity killed these people. It makes me ashamed to say that I’m a Christian. Because I could never do that to people. I try to live my life with integrity and love but I want to have faith. What if Jesus was the only way to heaven? There is just such a huge conflict in my mind about this and I can’t find a way to justify it or come to terms with it. So, I just sit and do nothing instead of progressing with my search for faith and spirituality.
By the way, DeNiro was ok. But I was REALLY bummed that they killed Aiden Quinn off so early. He is the hot one!)
Thank you Liz for being brave enough to post.
Chickie (Gina)
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