Special Providence_ American Foreign Policy and How It Changed World - Walter Russell Mead

IS8 SPECIALPROVIDENCE

Christianitytherehasgenuineworld-historicalimportance.Thevibrant
CatholicismofmanyAfricansseemslikelytoprovea majorelementin
thecontinuingstrengthoftheRomanCatholicChurchinthethirdmil-
lennium.Meanwhile,churchorganizationscontinuetoplayleadingroles
inprovidingreliefforthevictimsofAfrica'swarsandcatastrophes,and
anyprogresstowardstabledemocraticruleinmuchofAfricawillbetoa
verylargeextentthechildofthechurchesplantedbythemissionariesin
thecolonialera.

H

owevergreatitsreligiousimpacthasbeen,thekeytoappreciat-
ingtheimportanceofthemissionarymovementinAmericanfor-
eignpolicyliesinunderstandingitsnonreligiousimpact.A goodexample
isintheformerlandsoftheOttomanEmpire.Basicallycoterminouswith
themodernMiddleEastplusmuchofsoutheasternEurope,thisregion
was the objectofthe first greatmissionaryendeavorofthe Ameri-
canmissionarymovement,antedatingthemajorpushinChinabyfifty
years.HerethereligiousobjectivesoftheAmericanmissionaries-the
conversionoftheMuslimsoftheOttomanEmpiretoChristianity-
werealmostentirelyfrustrated.Furthermore,themethodtheychose-
upliftingtheChristianminoritiesoftheempirebothspiritually and
materially-endedintheruinofsomeoftheworld'smostancientChris-
tiancommunities.Theultimatehistorical judgmentontheAmerican
missionary record in theMiddle East may be thatthe missionaries
accomplishedinonecenturywhatIslamfailedtodointhirteen:elimi-
natingChristianityasa livingreligioninmuchoftheMiddleEast.
Yet,eventhoughtheyfailedtoreachtheirreligiousgoals,themis-
sionarieschangedtheMiddleEastinwaysthatstillendure.
Oncethefirst missionariesrealizedthattheregion'sMuslimswere
largelyuninterestedintheChristianmessage,theychangedtactics.The
AmericanmissionariesturnedtotheancientChristianminoritiesofthe
empire,includingcommunitiesofpeoplewhohadsurvivedunderMus-
limrulealmostsincethelifetimeoftheProphet:Armenians,Syrians,
Lebanese,theNestoreanandChaldeanChristiansofIranandMesopo-
tamia,theCoptsofEgypt,andtheconsiderableminorityofPalestinian
Arabs,who,onethousandyearsaftertheMuslimconquest,stillchoseto
remaininthecommunionoftheirfathers.Additionally,becausemuchof
theBalkanswasthenstillunderOttomanrule,theGreeks,Bulgarians,
Macedonians,andothersbecameobjectsofAmericanChristianmission
solicitude.