Kimberly Vargas Agnese

Did King George the third break his agreement with Native Americans?

Why yes. Yes he did.

And I’m a little nervous about saying this, but I think I need to tell you why.

The colonists wanted more land, and the right to wage war against Native Peoples to gain it. George said no. George also demanded taxes from the colonists without representation. The colonists refused to be unfairly taxed ( rightly so) AND not being allowed to take more land from the Natives, which resulted in the Revolutionary war.

And the colonists won.

The “ freedom” to take my ancestor’s land.

The “freedom” to corrale my ancestors into unfamiliar regions which were less desirable.

The “freedom” to send Native children to boarding schools.

The “freedom” to slaughter those amongst my ancestors … who got in the way.

In school, I was taught that King George the third was the bad guy. And that the colonists were the good guys. But maybe… maybe … he was in some small way… an almost ally of my people, an ally whose hands were tied … due to the kind of defeat which is celebrated on July 4.

And now I feel nervous. Nervous that some of my Word Press friends will hate me for bringing up such a controversial subject. For rocking the boat.

I am afraid I will be labeled as an enemy of conservatives. As a political agitator. But the truth is. I love peace. And I love you.

As a Christian, I believe that the Bible teaches that no human is above another. The book of Timothy warns against the love of money ( property). I believe that what was done to my people in the name of land acquisition proves the truth of that verse, which continues to say that this kind of greed leads to all sorts of evil.

As a Christian, I believe in law and order. I believe that murder is murder. And so I must believe that slaughtering innocents for gain is wrong. I believe what the Word of God says, over the Declaration of Independence which frames my ancestors as “ merciless Indian savages so as to rationalize committing unthinkable abominations against my people.

As a Christian I believe the truth … that this ancient history ought not be held against any people group. As a Christian I believe in repentance and forgiveness.

But as a Christian, I also believe that praising a history which has harmed others in the name of land acquisition and claiming that we were following Him when we did it… is using His name in vain.

If truth is truth. And the Bible is true. Would it be ok for me to break into someone’s home in order to evangelize them? Would my desire to evangelize them diminish such a crime? If I planned to use their home for Bible studies would that make breaking and entering and possibly murder acceptable in the sight of the Creator who made us all? Of course not.

But surely, if I discovered that I was in the wrong zone to practice my particular denomination.. then it would be Ok? Right?

I wax ridiculous. No preacher in their right mind would put forth such a teaching. And yet. The Word of God doesn’t change. Nor does His nature. So how can the unacceptable become so acceptable that these historical activities are celebrated by well meaning Christians across the continent?

Just how far has nationalism crept into our doctrines? Do we love America more than we love Jesus? Which documents/ scrolls are most sacred? Which will we evaluate our lives by? All I’m asking is that you research, pray about and see if what I’ve written about seems to line up , if so , then please consider, is praising actions that led to a genoicide… complicity?

With so much love,

Kimberly Vargas Agnese,

( one of the “ merciless Indian savages the Declaration of Independence … warned you about)

PS. You guys I can’t begin to tell you about the number of Native people I’ve met who have found the idea of Manifest Destiny to be such an incredible stumbling block, that they wouldn’t approach Jesus with a 10 foot pole. Due to the pride many Christians have in the genoicide of my people, and the understanding that Christians have put forth… that the Christian god gave consent for them to be plundered and plowed under, Jesus has become a byword in the mouths of many whom He died for. Jesus as been construed as a mercenary , entitlement granting deity who is lacking in every sort of morality…because of the actions of those who are supposed to bear His name. Please. For the sake of truth. For the sake of His name, for the sake of my people, and yourselves… pray..

10 comments

  1. I am always confused about how anybody can believe that the U.S.A is a Christian nation when they were built upon the blood of so many innocents. As well they are the biggest and worst war pigs in history

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    • I think that the idea that the “ founding fathers” were Christian , and by merit of that , they were attempting to create a great society based on biblical principles has a lot to do with it. And there are some biblical principles they did attempt to incorporate. But. Murder isn’t one of them. And celebrating the murder and exploitation of innocents .. calling those who defied King George’s authority so as to do this… heroes… even while we would strongly denounce murder today.. is a nauseating hypocrisy… the only way that I think anyone could rationalize this is by believing the phrase in the Declaration of Independence which states that Natives are merciless savages…. and rendering us less than human by which, freedoms and rights such as life… are not needful to apply to us.

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    • Thank you Mary K. This was a hard post. It was birthed in a lot of tears and prayer on July 4. It is surreal to be surrounded by people celebrating the revolution which in part empowered others to kill those you came from.. like falling into a rabbit hole where smiling people are encouraging you to celebrate the death of your own.

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    • Yes. And honestly, as one who spent many years in the Protestant church, they could know better. I mean, everyone knows that murder is wrong. But sometimes, each and every one of us has blinders in certain areas.
      Stephanie and I have been talking about this some today and feel that there is a disconnect for many. Many would say that what happened to the Natives was wrong. But in another conversation praise the heroic actions of those who fought to take land from us. I think it has a lot to do with what and how we are taught in school. While I get that the colonists were brave to stand for their own rights, and that they definitely showed resilience and a type of bravery in coming to a new continent, and learning how to survive off the land…
      I think that connecting the ideas of westward expansion, and how it harmed Natives is important… with a present day consideration as to whether or not to just venerate the forefathers. .. and hold them up as flawless heroes that need to be remembered… I’m definitely not saying that everything they did was wrong.. but some of us on this continent, like myself, would consider our fore fathers to be men like Geronimo, Sitting Bull etc..
      At this point I’m definitely not one who would advocate for an overthrow of government, and I appreciate the unique advantages that are to be had here under the US govt.. but still.. there is so much that was lost to us… and although some Natives are extremely pro- America ..to the point of becoming military heroes.. I guess I’m just not one of them. I want all of us on the continent to live well… and definitely don’t have answers.. just a confusing mix of gratitude… and pain at times.. and so I pray

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  4. Woah. I had yet to think about how this war affected the Native American tribes. This is such an important part of history no one talks about!!! I love this. Thank you so much for writing about it, Kimberly! You should write a history book for kids/adults about all the pushed aside parts of Native American history! 😉

    Good for you for rocking boats that need rocked ❤

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