Journal Entry #2

            The main purpose of this article is found in the title. “We are well as we are” [1] is a declaration from the indigenous people of the area that they do not have any need of the Christian faith. The main purpose of the article is to change the ideas that people have about early Christian missionaries. For a long time history has viewed these missionaries “as humble servants, saving souls from savagery and damnation”[2] when in reality besides a select few most of the Native Americans of the time were not interested in the Christian faith and instead wanted to keep their own religion alive. For those select few who chose to adopt the Christian faith it was said to be like committing “cultural suicide”[3] this article argues that the missionaries were disturbing what peace the Native people enjoyed. It seems as though Ronda does want to point out that the Europeans and Natives differ in religious beliefs. However he does also point out the similarities in the basic structures of both peoples belief systems. He states that they both “embraced a religious system that emphasized the supernatural and its interaction with man”[4] from this quote we can assume that Ronda does not want the readers to hate the Jesuit missionaries, but rather he wants us to understand their similarities to one another. Ronda seeks to show us that the Native Americans have many of the same goals and values as the missionaries. He wants us to view them as more than just savages. In the end the Native culture decided to embrace some Christian values but for the most part the Native people of Canada would remain the same spiritual people they were before the arrival of the Jesuits. The question is whether or not there would have been a different outcome if the missionaries had gone about their preaching’s in another way. Instead of choosing to push Christianity down their throats, they may have been better served to showcase the more positive side of what Christianity has to offer. As opposed to focusing on the punishment of Hell, they may have done better if they had just preached the word of god and by doing so let the people who wanted to convert be converted,

 

Works Cited

Ronda, James P. “We Are Well As We Are” The William and Mary Quarterly. 34 (1977) 66-82.   

[1] Ronda, James P. “We Are Well As We Are” The William and Mary Quarterly. 34 (1977): 81.

[2] Ronda, “We Are Well As We Are” 66.

[3] Ronda, “We Are Well As We Are” 67.

[4] Ronda, “We Are Well As We Are” 77.