Despite the attempts made to remedy the historical mistakes from Canada’s past, racism against Indigenous peoples (First Nations, Aboriginals, Metis) still exists. The bible teaches us how this systemic racism can be broken and the solution lies within each of us, individually.
James 2:1 & 9, 12-13 – “My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others?… 9 If you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.”
The reason why systemic racism against Indigenous peoples still exists is because we haven’t changed our own perspective. We continue to adopt the same perspective as our forefathers. The term ‘forefathers’ includes but is not limited to explorers, pioneers; even ancestors such as our grandparents and parents. The 'name' of our forefathers lives on in preceding generations when we follow their ways, views, philosophies and teachings. Society has handed us down a set of racist beliefs and we are condoning them by believing them and in turn, living by them.
Matthew 15:3 & 6 – He replied to them, And why also do you transgress and violate the commandment of God for the sake of the rules handed down to you by your forefathers? 6 So for the sake of your tradition (the rules handed down by your forefathers), you have set aside the Word of God [depriving it of force and authority and making it of no effect].
The traditions and cultures handed down to us by our forefathers nullifies the word of God. This means their teachings are filled with iniquity and therefore, are contrary to the word of God. Thus nullifying the power of the word of God in our lives.
If we continue to subscribe to our forefathers, grandparents, countries and founders’ way of thinking, we will be guilty of the same judgment from God that awaits them. People today didn’t participate in the physical taking of this land. However, we are guilty of upholding their actions of racism and oppression when we continue to agree with what they did and the way they treated the Indigenous people. This in turn causes us to treat Indigenous peoples with the same contempt.
Racism and hate is taught. We have learned to hate from society, media, family, friends and even the Church. Our actions are based on our perspective. The pioneers and explorers of Canada had a negative perspective of Aboriginals as being inferior and savages. This perspective gave them the justification they needed to carry out horrendous crimes against the First Nations peoples. In the same way today, a dangerous perspective of Indigenous peoples as being ‘inferior’ and ‘burdens on society’, can also justify actions of racism and oppression against them.
Luke 11:48 – But in fact, you stand as witnesses who agree with what your ancestors did. They killed the prophets, and you join in their crime by building the monuments!
We also join in the crime of abusing and oppressing the First Nations peoples when we glorify the pioneers and explorers of Canada, who oppresses, tricked and swindled the First Nations peoples out of their land.
Galatians 5:20-21 – idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Acts 17:26 – From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.
This means that God sets the boundaries of each tribe and ethnicities’ land, and no one should move that marker to extend their own boundaries.
Deuteronomy 19:14 – Do not move your neighbor’s boundary stone set up by your predecessors in the inheritance you receive in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess.
The early settlers, pioneers and explorers falsely claimed this land as the new Israel in order to justify their horrendous acts. We must not believe the same distortions and manipulations of scripture as we will be punished just the same for doing so. The North American continent is not the nation of Israel. Only the nation of Israel was promised such land. But even the Israelites could not extend their borders.
The establishment of Israel was a specific promise from God. It is not a free for all for any nation to extend their borders. Paul understood this concept since he preached to different Gentile nations, and never preached to extend a nations’ borders.
Paul preached about God to the Gentiles but he did not try to conquer them and take their land. This is the example the pioneers and explorers should have followed. They should have come to new lands, preached the gospel and returned home, being content with their own land.
King Hezekiah is an excellent example of what all followers of Christ should be doing, when he tells the people of Judah in:
2 Chronicles 29:6-7 – Our parents were unfaithful; they did evil in the eyes of the Lord our God and forsook him. They turned their faces away from the Lord’s dwelling place and turned their backs on him. 7 They also shut the doors of the portico and put out the lamps. They did not burn incense or present any burnt offerings at the sanctuary to the God of Israel.”
King Hezekiah had no problem admitting the truth about how his parents, forefathers/ancestors acted wrongly. He refused to think the same way they did and by doing so, he did not commit their same wrong actions. He changed his way of thinking so as not to receive the same punishment.
Again, Hezekiah says in:
2 Chronicles 30:7 & 8 – Do not be like your parents and your fellow Israelites, who were unfaithful to the Lord, the God of their ancestors, so that he made them an object of horror, as you see. 8 Do not be stiff-necked, as your ancestors were; submit to the Lord. Come to his sanctuary, which he has consecrated forever. Serve the Lord your God, so that his fierce anger will turn away from you.”
We must undo the hate and indifference our society has taught us by changing our perspective on Indigenous peoples. Each person has to see Indigenous people as equal within themselves. Canada’s forefathers had an evil perspective on Indigenous people. Their intentions were covetous in nature and so they labelled the Indigenous people as inhuman, so that they could justify their oppression and take advantage of them.
First Nations communities are rife with poverty, depression, drug addiction, alcoholism, abuse and crime. If we were put into the same circumstances as the Indigenous people, we would be no different than they are today. Indigenous people are humans just like us. If any one of us experienced being forced off our land and into a desolate reservation, stripped of our culture and way of life and separated from our children or parents; if we were starved, abused, abandoned, oppressed and unemployed, our outcome would be the exact same. Their brokenness is a direct result and reflection of the circumstances that society has put them in.
The only way we can make sure that we are not included in the punishment that awaits those in the past who have oppressed the Indigenous people of Canada, is to admit that what was done to the Indigenous peoples was wrong and to change our perspective going forward. In God’s eyes, we will be equally as guilty as the founders and pioneers of Canada if we don’t change the way we think about our ancestors’ philosophies and in turn, the way we think about Indigenous people.
We must also change the way we look at the explorers and pioneers of Canada. Imagine if someone came into your home and took it over by force. Would you call that person a great explorer or pioneer? Would you build a road or statue in their name? Would you tell great stories about them to your children?
We shouldn’t be glorifying the actions of our forefathers. We hail them as great explorers and pioneers, but they were really thieves and murderers. They roamed the Earth to see what they could steal, plunder and conquer for selfish ambition and greed. It is no different than a thief roaming a neighborhood to see if there is anything of value to take/steal.
As our perspective on Indigenous peoples change, so will our actions. Once we have achieved a balanced perspective, our decisions and actions towards others will also become balanced.
The Jewish people were never taught to respect or glorify their forefathers and their history. They were meant to be realistic about their ancestors and their history and to recognize past mistakes and flaws so that future generations do not repeat it. They were not taught to only remember the good (which is what society teaches us; to respect and honor the dead. This concept is not a Biblical concept). Doing so will cause us to walk in our forefathers’ flawed ways instead of imitating Jesus’ ways.
Our hearts should reflect that of Jeremiah 3:25 “Let us lie down in our shame, and let our disgrace cover us. We have sinned against the LORD our God, both we and our ancestors; from our youth till this day we have not obeyed the LORD our God.”
James 2:1 & 9, 12-13 – “My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others?… 9 If you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.”
The reason why systemic racism against Indigenous peoples still exists is because we haven’t changed our own perspective. We continue to adopt the same perspective as our forefathers. The term ‘forefathers’ includes but is not limited to explorers, pioneers; even ancestors such as our grandparents and parents. The 'name' of our forefathers lives on in preceding generations when we follow their ways, views, philosophies and teachings. Society has handed us down a set of racist beliefs and we are condoning them by believing them and in turn, living by them.
Matthew 15:3 & 6 – He replied to them, And why also do you transgress and violate the commandment of God for the sake of the rules handed down to you by your forefathers? 6 So for the sake of your tradition (the rules handed down by your forefathers), you have set aside the Word of God [depriving it of force and authority and making it of no effect].
The traditions and cultures handed down to us by our forefathers nullifies the word of God. This means their teachings are filled with iniquity and therefore, are contrary to the word of God. Thus nullifying the power of the word of God in our lives.
If we continue to subscribe to our forefathers, grandparents, countries and founders’ way of thinking, we will be guilty of the same judgment from God that awaits them. People today didn’t participate in the physical taking of this land. However, we are guilty of upholding their actions of racism and oppression when we continue to agree with what they did and the way they treated the Indigenous people. This in turn causes us to treat Indigenous peoples with the same contempt.
Racism and hate is taught. We have learned to hate from society, media, family, friends and even the Church. Our actions are based on our perspective. The pioneers and explorers of Canada had a negative perspective of Aboriginals as being inferior and savages. This perspective gave them the justification they needed to carry out horrendous crimes against the First Nations peoples. In the same way today, a dangerous perspective of Indigenous peoples as being ‘inferior’ and ‘burdens on society’, can also justify actions of racism and oppression against them.
Luke 11:48 – But in fact, you stand as witnesses who agree with what your ancestors did. They killed the prophets, and you join in their crime by building the monuments!
We also join in the crime of abusing and oppressing the First Nations peoples when we glorify the pioneers and explorers of Canada, who oppresses, tricked and swindled the First Nations peoples out of their land.
Galatians 5:20-21 – idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Acts 17:26 – From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.
This means that God sets the boundaries of each tribe and ethnicities’ land, and no one should move that marker to extend their own boundaries.
Deuteronomy 19:14 – Do not move your neighbor’s boundary stone set up by your predecessors in the inheritance you receive in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess.
The early settlers, pioneers and explorers falsely claimed this land as the new Israel in order to justify their horrendous acts. We must not believe the same distortions and manipulations of scripture as we will be punished just the same for doing so. The North American continent is not the nation of Israel. Only the nation of Israel was promised such land. But even the Israelites could not extend their borders.
The establishment of Israel was a specific promise from God. It is not a free for all for any nation to extend their borders. Paul understood this concept since he preached to different Gentile nations, and never preached to extend a nations’ borders.
Paul preached about God to the Gentiles but he did not try to conquer them and take their land. This is the example the pioneers and explorers should have followed. They should have come to new lands, preached the gospel and returned home, being content with their own land.
King Hezekiah is an excellent example of what all followers of Christ should be doing, when he tells the people of Judah in:
2 Chronicles 29:6-7 – Our parents were unfaithful; they did evil in the eyes of the Lord our God and forsook him. They turned their faces away from the Lord’s dwelling place and turned their backs on him. 7 They also shut the doors of the portico and put out the lamps. They did not burn incense or present any burnt offerings at the sanctuary to the God of Israel.”
King Hezekiah had no problem admitting the truth about how his parents, forefathers/ancestors acted wrongly. He refused to think the same way they did and by doing so, he did not commit their same wrong actions. He changed his way of thinking so as not to receive the same punishment.
Again, Hezekiah says in:
2 Chronicles 30:7 & 8 – Do not be like your parents and your fellow Israelites, who were unfaithful to the Lord, the God of their ancestors, so that he made them an object of horror, as you see. 8 Do not be stiff-necked, as your ancestors were; submit to the Lord. Come to his sanctuary, which he has consecrated forever. Serve the Lord your God, so that his fierce anger will turn away from you.”
We must undo the hate and indifference our society has taught us by changing our perspective on Indigenous peoples. Each person has to see Indigenous people as equal within themselves. Canada’s forefathers had an evil perspective on Indigenous people. Their intentions were covetous in nature and so they labelled the Indigenous people as inhuman, so that they could justify their oppression and take advantage of them.
First Nations communities are rife with poverty, depression, drug addiction, alcoholism, abuse and crime. If we were put into the same circumstances as the Indigenous people, we would be no different than they are today. Indigenous people are humans just like us. If any one of us experienced being forced off our land and into a desolate reservation, stripped of our culture and way of life and separated from our children or parents; if we were starved, abused, abandoned, oppressed and unemployed, our outcome would be the exact same. Their brokenness is a direct result and reflection of the circumstances that society has put them in.
The only way we can make sure that we are not included in the punishment that awaits those in the past who have oppressed the Indigenous people of Canada, is to admit that what was done to the Indigenous peoples was wrong and to change our perspective going forward. In God’s eyes, we will be equally as guilty as the founders and pioneers of Canada if we don’t change the way we think about our ancestors’ philosophies and in turn, the way we think about Indigenous people.
We must also change the way we look at the explorers and pioneers of Canada. Imagine if someone came into your home and took it over by force. Would you call that person a great explorer or pioneer? Would you build a road or statue in their name? Would you tell great stories about them to your children?
We shouldn’t be glorifying the actions of our forefathers. We hail them as great explorers and pioneers, but they were really thieves and murderers. They roamed the Earth to see what they could steal, plunder and conquer for selfish ambition and greed. It is no different than a thief roaming a neighborhood to see if there is anything of value to take/steal.
As our perspective on Indigenous peoples change, so will our actions. Once we have achieved a balanced perspective, our decisions and actions towards others will also become balanced.
The Jewish people were never taught to respect or glorify their forefathers and their history. They were meant to be realistic about their ancestors and their history and to recognize past mistakes and flaws so that future generations do not repeat it. They were not taught to only remember the good (which is what society teaches us; to respect and honor the dead. This concept is not a Biblical concept). Doing so will cause us to walk in our forefathers’ flawed ways instead of imitating Jesus’ ways.
Our hearts should reflect that of Jeremiah 3:25 “Let us lie down in our shame, and let our disgrace cover us. We have sinned against the LORD our God, both we and our ancestors; from our youth till this day we have not obeyed the LORD our God.”
