Missionary conversion relied on alliance with colonial political power rather than persuasion.
Evidence
I suggest that we must not underestimate the violence involved in all these intentions and their execution. The imposition of an alien faith, in the name of conversion to Christianity, is not always steeped in persuasion and the ability of the convert to see the reason or power of the missionary’s message. It involves clear dependence on and alliance with the political arm that grants favors to enable the Christian message to be spread with greater success. — Frans Dokman, Beyond Bantu Philosophy_…, 449
Categorization
Category: Causal Relationships
- ADDENDUM: Connects to ‘On Sacrifice’ only loosely; more directly connects to the broader colonial-critique thread. This is a strong claim about how missionary work depended on the colonial state.
Related
- Christian conversion in colonial Africa relied on political alliance and coercion, not persuasion (similarity 0.94)
- A well-meaning missionary’s work can unintentionally serve colonial oppression (similarity 0.82)
- The colonial mission produced effects opposite to the missionary’s own intentions. (similarity 0.81)
- Missionary conversion relied on state power more than persuasion (similarity 0.81)
- The failure of missionary evangelization in Africa motivated the writing of Bantu Philosophy (similarity 0.80)
- British colonizers broke treaty pledges and backed Christianity’s conversion drive (similarity 0.80)
- Missionary conversion aimed to manufacture a new colonial subjectivity, not just religious belief (similarity 0.79)
- Tempels sought to understand Bantu thought only after missionary conversion failed (similarity 0.79)