Even though colonialist policies are generally frowned upon in modern society, the effects of colonialism still send ripples across the socio-cultural, economic, and political landscapes of multiple states. Although the concept of colonialism is typically linked to the Columbian era and the expansion of the British Empire, the phenomenon at hand can also be observed when examining ancient history. Specifically, the ethical issue of choosing between the colonialist perspective that Christianity has long been known for and the inaction that will annihilate the opportunity for other people to accept Christ as their Savior and, thus, achieve redemption, occurs. Although the concept of enforcing Christian ideas within the global community could be regarded as colonialist, the resulting opportunity for salvation that it will open for all those who will choose to follow the Christian faith will make the specified concession worthwhile.
The concept of colonialism was not yet defined at the time when the Bible was being written. However, the fact that the subject matter had not been named yet by the time when it was observed does not imply that it did not take place in the target community. Specifically, given the fact that Jewish people were looked won at during the era in question, it could be argued that the Roman people were implementing a colonialist policy toward Jewish people. Namely, the Bible states quite explicitly that Jewish people have been oppressed significantly by Romans, as well as representatives of other cultures that were prevalent at the specified period (Schwalbe 19). As a result, the concept of colonialism remains frequently implied in the Bible, with Jewish people often happening to be on the receiving end of it.
Remarkably, the phenomenon of colonialism has been viewed generally negatively in the present-day culture, which can be considered a major shift from the presentation of colonialist ideas as they occur in the Bible. Specifically, unlike the present-day setting, where colonialism is regarded as the main factor behind the current problem of inequality, colonialism was regarded as an inevitable part of reality during the era depicted in the Bible.
Thus, one can observe the tremendous change that has been made over several centuries. Specifically, the interpretation of the perception of freedom as the state of being able to make decisions, even as minor as the one described above, for oneself. Thus the TV series in question introduces its audience to a rather peculiar way of interpreting reality. Remarkably, the specified approach toward interpreting the elements of everyday reality that the target characters are supposed to take for granted, the process of cultural exchange, and the tasks of imbuing the target culture with the elements that are deemed as dominant and, therefore, desirable. Therefore, the concept of colonialism is one of the foundational aspects of the modern interpretation of the Bible.
When considering cases such as the one described above, the issue of prejudices against specific groups of people and the problem of racial and ethnic profiling is often mentioned in conjunction with the presence of rampant biases. In the target context, the presence of the setting that indicates the existence of inequality and subjugation of Jewish people allows connecting the issue of colonialism to the problems of racism and slavery along with the issue of cultural dominance mentioned above. Therefore, even though Christianity has been the dominant religion for quite a substantial period, some of its stages involved rather harsh attitudes toward Jewish people, as well as the propensity toward converting people to Christianity as the process aimed at saving the target population, even if the process in question procured against their will (Schwalbe 21). Indeed, the infamous attempts at converting people to Christianity as a part of the crusades against Muslim people still affect the relationships between Muslim people and Christians (Schwalbe 22). Therefore, Christianity carries the signs of colonialism to this day, which echoes in the prejudices that a significant number of people have toward people of different religious beliefs, including Judaism and Islam.
Even though colonialism as one of the essential characteristics of early Christianity no longer represents a part of the present-day Christian faith, its effects still echo in the global community, which affects people’s willingness to open their hearts to Jesus and accept the Christian faith. Therefore, a brief assessment of the phenomenon of colonialism in the Christian culture and evaluation of its effects on the present-day relationships between representatives of different cultures indicates that further changes are needed. Remarkably, when following the Bible, one will realize that the concept of colonialism is viewed purely through a positive lens and regarded as an important stage in helping the target audience prepare for the acceptance of the Christian faith. However, while the acceptance of Christian beliefs and values is vital for the further chance of salvation, it should not come at the price of destroying other cultures. Therefore, in the context of the present-day multicultural environment, a compromise must be located.
Work Cited
Schwalbe, Stephen. Killing for God: An Analysis of Conflict in the Abrahamic Religions. Rowman & Littlefield, 2020.