(First in a series of three posts… maybe four)
From St. Paul…
“My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” Colossians 2:2-3
In a recent interview with famed astrophysicist, Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson, he said that the greatest achievement in the history of humankind was Christopher Columbus’ discovery of the new world. He noted it could have been anybody… but Columbus gets the credit… even though we know now the Vikings crossed the ocean first.
And when asked, ‘why?’ his reply went something like this… “Well people have always been on the move. 10,000 years ago, at the time of an ice age there was a land mass from the east across the Bering Straits into what we call the western hemisphere. Many people came across and kept moving south… into what we know now as Canada, the USA, Mexico down into South America. Then the ice melted… there then being no way back and for 10,000 years no one else on the planet knew there were people living where we live now… until Christopher Columbus…” Thus… NdT’s thinking this was the greatest moment in human history as for the first time in 10,000 years the world was now re-connected.
That’s my paraphrase anyway… and all Columbus bashing aside and pointing out that there are many today who would like to tear down his statues and rename the capital of Ohio… and admitting his antics were both brave, selfish, greedy and oppressive… people are still on the move… only now we can track them on their iPhones… to point out in real time whether their actions are for the good of all or for things most of us detest. But… 10,000 years is a long time and those who were ‘native’ to America somehow figured out how to survive and had a perspective of how life is to be lived and did so with no knowledge of the story of Abraham… or Jesus… nor the religion of the ancient Egyptians or the gods of India or the Buddha which goes back to the 6 th century B.C. taking form long after those who had trekked the Bering Straits 10,000 years prior…
St. Paul suggests that God is a mystery… and all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Jesus Christ… and if so… how could those living here when the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria arrived back in 1492 have anything to contribute to those who arrived. Sometimes I wonder who discovered whom?
In the coming weeks I want to present some of the native American wisdom I have stumbled on over the years… as those living here found their purpose and trust in the Great White Spirit…. And did have much to share… for those who would listen… and so I leave you with these quotes until next time…
“Everything on the earth has a purpose, every disease an herb to cure it, and every person a mission. This is our way of life.”
–Mourning Dove (1888-1936)
“The Great Spirit is in all things. He is in the air we breathe. The Great Spirit is our Father, but the Earth is our Mother. She nourishes us… That which we put into the ground she returns to us.”
– Big Thunder (late 1800s)
And this… still broken-hearted and praying over the killings in Uvalde this past week…
“Remember that your children are not your own… but are lent to you by the Creator.” – a Mohawk Proverb
Faith matters… 10,000 years and counting…
The Rev. Dr. Brian K. Gigee is a long-time resident of Pearland, having pastored four churches over the last four decades in Texas and Louisiana. Read more following Brian’s blog ‘murmurings’ at https://briangigee.wordpress.com/. Send comments and/or questions to godworks247365@gmail.com.
