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

144 SPECIALPROVIDEN'CE

problemsweregreater:Howtoattracttheheathentothechurch?The
obviousanswerssprangtomind,especiallybe!=ausetheywerehallowed
byChrist'sowninstructions:Feedthehungry,educatethechildren,treat
thesick.
Religiousmissionaries,howeverzealousforsouls,couldnotbeblind
totheotherneedsofthoseamongwhomtheylived.Ignorance,lackof
sanitation,theoppressionofwomen,disease-thesealsohadtobedealt
with,partlyas evilsin andofthemselves thatthe missionaries felt
obligedtocombat,andpartlybecauseoppositiontothemwoulddraw
soulstoChrist'smessage.
Andveryquicklythemissionaries'taskgrewmorecomplex,Social
injusticewas thegreatestevilfoundinmanypartsoftheearth.Feudal
bondagesystemsoffendedthemissionaryheartasmuchasArthurian
England'sfeudalismoffendedTwain'sConnecticutYankee.Howcould
a Christianbrotherorsisterstandsilentinthefaceofsuchinjustice,
especiallywhen,asinKorea,thefeudalnobilitywerethefiercestfoesof
Christianityandusedtheirpowertokeepthehumblepoorfromattend-
ingchurch?
Andthentherewastheproblemofthenonmissionarypresenceofthe
West.Unscrupuloustraders,lascivioussailors,andrapaciousimperialists
wereconstantsourcesofdangertothepeoplesof thenon-Westernworld.
GreatcivilizationsandempiresliketheOttomanEmpireand China
werehardpressedtocope.Manytribalpeopleswereurterlyoverwhelmed;
somewouldnotsurvivethenineteenthcentury,andotherswouldlose
touchwiththeirownculrureswithourfindinga waytoapproachthenew
culturesandtechnologyoftheWest.Missionaries,whooftensawthem-
selvesasthealliesofthenon-Westernpeoplesamongwhomtheylived,
hadcomplexrelationshipswithalltheseforces.Thusmissionariesgener-
allyopposedtheopiumtradeinChinaandcertainaspectsofWestern
economicimperialism,butwelcomedthepresenceofWestern troops
whentheirlivesandpropertywereendangered.Individualmissionaries,
ofcourse,hadoutlooksrangingfromwholeheartedsupportforbusiness
tosuspicionofanyendeavorsthatdivertedtheattentionoftheirflocks
fromtheCross.Invirtuallyallcases,however,missionariessawthem-
selvesasfillinganintermediaryrole-attemptingtoprotecttheircon-
gregationsfromthedepredationsofunscrupulousWesterners,whilealso
servingasavenuesthroughwhichWesternvalues,ideas,andtechniques
couldpenetratelocalcultures.
Americanmissionariesplayedanimportantroleinstabilizingand