This
week we began discussing world views of the Bible. Obviously, people who
experienced colonization, or whose ancestors experienced colonization read and
interpret the Bible differently than those who have not. It is possible to
experience colonization as a colonizer or as the colonized. Post-colonial
interpretation of the Bible is the newest interpretation.
It is
very important to promote other readings of the Bible. It is important to
examine other perspectives of the Bible and to learn different perspectives. As
a person of European decent it is important to remember that the Europeans
where pretty horrible to the rest of the world. It is important that often, the
whites where not the first people in an area. The white people often trampled
on other cultures and ideas. They often exterminated nonwhite culture. Now, it
is time to recognize the beauty and wonder of other cultures. It is time to
apologize for the harm. It is time for nonwhite culture to shine. I think that
people should be exposed to other nonwhite cultures. It will help people to discover
more about themselves and about their beliefs. It is important to remember that
for others, the European view is not the right view, it is not the productive
view, and it is not the proper view. It is important to accept other’s views in
order to fully accept other’s in to the church.
Next,
it is also important to recognize the harms of colonization. It is important to
recognize that colonization eradicated peoples and cultures. In order to right
this wrong, we must begin to recognize other interpretations. We must bring
other cultures in to the fold. And European cultures must recognize the harms
that they caused. In order to properly do this, they must listen. In order to
truly listen they must observe and reflect on other cultures, including
post-colonial interpretations of the Bible.
So, the
Europeans did horrible things to the people that they concurred and colonized.
They destroyed several cultures, or at least suppressed them. It is now time to
fix these mistakes. It is time to listen and observe other cultures. It is time
to understand that the European interpretation is not the only one. For many
people the European interpretation is simply wrong. It is not productive, it is not helpful and
many may even view it as harmful. It is time for the Europeans to recognize
other interpretations and to recognize the harms that they caused.
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