grumpytheBright
09-01-2007, 10:05 PM
When I first arrived in southern Belize in September of 1992, most of the missionary damage had already been done.
The first wave was the Catholics, of course, who had some really compelling arguments for the Maya to convert from their old religion to the new one. "Would you like to acknowledge Jesus Christ as your personal savior, or would you rather this here soldier run you through with his dull rusty blade?"
The Maya were not as rich as some of the other nations, like the Aztecs, but they did have a little gold and some jade. In return for these valuables the Catholics gave the Maya iron implements, measles and small pox.
The original first names of Maya people are lost. They now have names like Pablo, Concepciona, Magdalena. They have retained their given names. Names like Pop, Cal, Ack.
The Maya of Belize are divided into two peoples, the Maya Mopan, and the Maya Kekchi. The Mopan speak what's left of the old language, and the Kekchi speak, what else, Kekchi. Both languages are heavily influenced by Spanish. In both languages the word for god is "dios". Whatever the old words were is lost.
Bad as it was to have their old culture changed beyond recognition, at least for a couple of centuries all the people were of one religion. Catholic.
Later came the Pentacostals, JWs, Seventh Day Adventists, Mennonites (Amish) and to a lesser degree, Mormons.
Now, instead of all the people in a village sharing the same customs and holidays, they are divided into several groups, each of whom believe they have the only TRUE belief system, and that all the others are going to hell.
(I'm not ready for this but I don't want to throw away what I have so far. It's depressing to think about these things.--More later.
grumpy
The first wave was the Catholics, of course, who had some really compelling arguments for the Maya to convert from their old religion to the new one. "Would you like to acknowledge Jesus Christ as your personal savior, or would you rather this here soldier run you through with his dull rusty blade?"
The Maya were not as rich as some of the other nations, like the Aztecs, but they did have a little gold and some jade. In return for these valuables the Catholics gave the Maya iron implements, measles and small pox.
The original first names of Maya people are lost. They now have names like Pablo, Concepciona, Magdalena. They have retained their given names. Names like Pop, Cal, Ack.
The Maya of Belize are divided into two peoples, the Maya Mopan, and the Maya Kekchi. The Mopan speak what's left of the old language, and the Kekchi speak, what else, Kekchi. Both languages are heavily influenced by Spanish. In both languages the word for god is "dios". Whatever the old words were is lost.
Bad as it was to have their old culture changed beyond recognition, at least for a couple of centuries all the people were of one religion. Catholic.
Later came the Pentacostals, JWs, Seventh Day Adventists, Mennonites (Amish) and to a lesser degree, Mormons.
Now, instead of all the people in a village sharing the same customs and holidays, they are divided into several groups, each of whom believe they have the only TRUE belief system, and that all the others are going to hell.
(I'm not ready for this but I don't want to throw away what I have so far. It's depressing to think about these things.--More later.
grumpy