Mission and Unity

Abstract

This article discusses the historical conditions of the insertion of Christianity in Latin America. It points to the links between a colonizing project and Christian missions on that continent. The Christianity that settled here from the 16th century onward was marked by conflicts and controversies. Oppression and war against native populations were often justified as a necessary condition for evangelization. The political and theological disputes over the Protestant Reformation in Europe had repercussions on the continent as one more factor to intensify the conflict. Thus, one of the main structuring axes of the first notion of Christian unity on the continent was the exclusion of the other. However, in this context a prophetic Christianity also emerged out of compassion for the victims of the colonizing process. This article highlights central aspects of this Christianity of liberation that today still challenge missionary practices, but not only in Latin America. An evangelizing methodology conceived out of the living conditions of victims of oppressive systems questions even the missionary strategies of Protestant denominations active on the continent from the 19th century onwards, especially with regard to their civilizing ideal of local cultures. A careful and judicious look at the past of Christianization in Latin America can offer motivation for practices of ecumenical coexistence between different faiths, challenged by the pain of today's world and in solidarity with the victims of our consumer society.