The Effects of Christianity on Cabeza de Vaca and the Natives
On June 17, 1527, Cabeza de Vaca set sail on the order to conquer and govern the lands from the Rio Grande to the cape of Florida. However, during his journey he encountered much devastation such as the wrecking of his ship which resulted in his separation from the majority of his Christian companions. Praying to God after every ordeal, Cabeza routinely sought after his Christian religion to guide him through his unexpected journey. While traveling through the interior of America, he also encountered many native tribes which inhabited the land. While most of the Spanish conquistadors in the sixteenth century spread their religion through warlike ways and rearranged societies for the sole purpose of their own economic gain, Cabeza thought that kindness was the only way to win the hearts of the natives and without clothes or any material possessions, he upheld his promise and beliefs. After being enslaved by the natives Cabeza moved from tribe to tribe with the hope of finding his fellow Christians while praising and thanking God that his life was spared. Moving from tribe to tribe as a medicine man Cabeza still lived by his Christian teachings and implemented them into the way that he communicated with the natives, ultimately converting many tribes into Christianity. The religion of Christianity directly influenced the way in which Cabeza de Vaca interacted and felt toward the natives, thus throughout the duration of his time traveling across the interior of America, Cabeza was able to continually practice his religious beliefs while also being able to convert many Indians to his religion at the same time.
The main question which the explorers of North America had i...
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... hardships he must face. Differing from other Spanish explorers Cabeza does not use violence as a means of spreading his word and eventually gains utter respect from the Indians he interacts with and even the respect of Indians that he has never met. Toward the end of the sixteenth century, Spanish explorers spread a wave of bloodshed and disease through the New World killing almost all of the natives indigenous to the land. Cabeza de Vaca stands apart from his counterparts in the fact that he used peace and kindness to win the hearts of the natives and successfully converted the Indians he met into Christians.
Bibliography
Stephen, Petty. "Cabeza de Vaca: A Model for Multiculturalism." 6 March 2006.
http://www.library.txstate.edu/swwc/cdv/further_study/multiculturalism.pdf
de Vaca, Cabeza. Aventures in the Unknown Interior of America. New Mexico: 1983.
From a proud Conquistador, to a castaway, a slave and trader, and then medicine man, Cabeza de Vaca was the first European to explore much of the southern coast of Texas. Cabeza was a 37 year old military veteran in 1527 when he left on the Narvaez Expedition to find gold and colonize the Gulf Coast. He was the expedition’s treasurer. Cabeza de Vaca was enslaved by Indians in 1528 when one of the rafts the crew made crashed on present day Galveston island, he then escaped in 1530 and joined/was enslaved by another tribe called the Charrucos until his escape with 3 other survivors in 1534. He then walked to Mexico City. Cabeza survived this ordeal because of the incredible patience he had, his skills of diplomacy and goodwill, and his amazing wilderness survival skills.
that Cabeza had great respect for the Indians and wanted to help them as much as he could so he would be respected back. “That we cured the sick, and that (The Spaniards) killed those who were well.”(Doc D) Cabeza was set to cure those in need but the Spaniards were already killing those who were well so his goal was very hard to set but he managed to heal a great amount of people. “And was therefore allowed to serve as a trader among Indian bands.”(Doc B) Throughout Cabeza’s journey, he learned lots of ways to stay alive such as being accepted to trade with lots of Indians and make money to find more ways to escape
...survival. Cabeza de Vaca cannot thank God enough for carrying him through the terrible times that he and the few remaining Spaniards went through as captives of the Indians. He feels a sort of accomplishment for making it through and comes out with a better appreciation for life. After experiencing what it was like to have been an Indian and a slave, and after being on the verge of death several times, the fact that Cabeza de Vaca was able to keep his composure and take each day at a time is astonishing. Of course, like a worthy Christian, Cabeza de Vaca gives God all of the credit in the world for his survival and success. However, it is Cabeza de Vaca’s faith in himself and determination that allow him to survive and go through the changes that he makes. It is almost a riches to rags, and back to riches story. However, the riches at the outcome of the expedition are far different from the riches going in. These new riches are not measured in gold or land, but in the appreciation for human life and the struggle for survival which made a better man out of him.
...s others whether it is one of their own or someone completely different. This variance shows that instead of being vastly different as de Vaca often describes, the two groups were in reality equals. The best insight is de Vaca’s own words on the matter. At various times he describes the Indians as “savages”. However, at the end of his journey, he states that “Clearly, to bring all these people to Christianity and subjection to Your Imperial Majesty, they must be won by kindness, the only certain way” (123). Cabeza de Vaca’s transformation from a condescending invader to a man declaring the need for kindness towards natives proves that his ideas towards Indians had transformed from superiority towards equality. If Cabeza de Vaca’s advice to governmental power on expansion had been heeded it is possible that the horrors of future imperialism would have been averted.
One of the most interesting aspects of Diaz’s narrative is towards the end when Cortés broaches the subject of Christianity with Montezuma. Conversion and missionary work was one of the most important and lasting goals of the conquistadors and other contemporary explorers, they were charged with this duty by the rulers who sent t...
From 711-1492, Christian Spaniards lived under Moorish rule until eventually, the Christian Kingdoms took over during the Reconquista. The conflicts between the Muslims and Christians created a militaristic culture in Spain that surpassed that of any other European nation. Furthermore, being trained militarily was often exclusively attributed to the nobility however, in Spain, “many young men knew these skills and used them to their advantage.” Without a doubt, recently reconquering their homeland motivated the Spanish to a basis for expansion and conquest that most other European societies were lacking. In addition, the voyages of Christopher Columbus led to discovering the New World which undoubtedly contributed to added interest in conquest. Eventually, each conquest further raised Spanish hopes for fame and
For many years’ native people of the North America lived in peaceful in their homelands. However, one day the lives of the Native Americans would come to an upsetting stop. In June of 1540, Hernando De Soto, a Spanish explorer to led the first European expedition deep into the United States mainland in search of god, glory and gold. Hernando set to out to conquer the empire and to capture the Aztecs, .On his next journey out as govern, he encountered the native’s people. From that day forward, natives would adapt to the settlers ways and even involved themselves in wars.
In 1539 Hernando de Soto and five hundred adventurers began on a journey of exploration that would take 4 years and would travel through 10 states in the southeast United States. His goal was to discover a source of wealth, preferably gold, and around his mines establish a settlement. During his travels through La Florida he encountered numerous groups of native peoples, making friends of some and enemies of others. His expedition was not the first in La Florida; however, it was the most extensive. In its aftermath, thousands of Indians would die by disease that the Spaniards brought from the Old World. De Soto would initially be remembered as a great explorer but, would be later viewed as a destroyer of native culture. However, in truth de Soto was neither a hero or a villain but rather an adventurer.
The discovery and conquest of American Indians inspired efforts to develop an ideology that could justify why they needed to enslave the Indians. The Spanish monarch wanted an ideal empire. "A universal empire, of which all their subjects were but servants. Charles V remained for them the dominus mundi, the legitimate and God-ordained lord of the world." (Weckmann, The Transit of Civilization, 23) Gold and religious conversion was the two most important inspirations for conquistadors in conquering America. Father Bartolome De Las Casas was a Dominican priest who came to the New World to convert the Indians to become Christians. He spent forty years on Hispanolia and nearby islands, and saw how the Spaniards brutally treated the Indians and sympathized with them. The Devastation of the Indies was an actual eyewitness account of the genocide by Las Casas, and his group of Dominican friars in which he demonizes the Spanish colonists and praises the Indians. Father Las Casas returned to Seville, where he published his book that caused an on going debate on whether the suppression of the Indians corrupted the Spaniards' values. What Las Casas was trying to achieve was the notion of human rights, that human beings are free and cogent by nature without the interference of others.
Finally, when it came down to the types of ceremonies and views both civilizations had, they were on two different pages. The Natives believed happiness was the key to good fortune. So, in order to get that fortune, they’d do sacrifices, and rituals to please the “mighty ones”. Then, as stated in the book “A History of Latin America”, it says, “Jews publicly converted to Christianity to avoid the torture…”, In which, this showed how religion and the spiritual views were forced upon people in the Spanish civilization.
What he and his men did to the Indigenous people is told in horrifying detail by the Dominican priest Bartolome de Las Casas, “whose writings give the most thorough account of the Spanish-Indian encounter.” Las Casas witnessed firsthand Columbus’ soldiers stabbing Natives for sport, dashing babies’ heads on rocks, and sexually abusing Indigenous women. His testimony was corroborated by other eyewitnesses, such as a group of Dominican friars, who addressed the Spanish monarchy in 1519, hoping to bring an end to the atrocities. At the very least, Columbus was complicit in the actions of his men. He cared so little for the welfare of the Indigenous people that he let his soldiers commit reprehensible acts that would be considered crimes against humanity in the present day. Christopher Columbus’ actions suggest he had no issue with serving as an enabler of the horrifying actions committed by his men against the Indigenous
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In A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies, Bartolomé de Las Casas vividly describes the brutality wrought on the natives in the Americas by the Europeans primarily for the purpose of proclaiming and spreading the Christian faith. Las Casas originally intended this account to reach the royal administration of Spain; however, it soon found its way into the hands of many international readers, especially after translation. Bartolomé de Las Casas illustrates an extremely graphic and grim reality to his readers using literary methods such as characterization, imagery, amplification, authorial intrusion and the invocation of providence while trying to appeal to the sympathies of his audience about such atrocities.
Cabeza de Vaca, like many other Spaniards, wanted to seek fortune in the new world, but things did not go as planned, and he eventually lost everything. Although he came to conquer in the name of Spain, he ended up living amongst the Native Americans in need for survival and became very close to them. Although originally the Spaniards were very narrow minded and believed the Indians were uncivilized and barbaric, Cabeza de Vaca shortly found out that they were not uncivilized, but quite the opposite. He saw that they were just as human as the Spaniards were and were no less than they were. His perception of humanity altered as a result of living with “the others.”
The Black Legend and White Legend: Relationship Between the Spanish and Indians in the New World