Religion

Eugene

(62,658 posts) Wed Nov 28, 2018, 02:01 PM Nov 2018

'He lost his mind': Slain missionary John Allen Chau planned for years to convert remote tribe

Source: Washington Post

‘He lost his mind’: Slain missionary John Allen Chau planned for years to convert remote tribe

By Annie Gowen November 27 at 7:28 PM

On Instagram, John A. Chau came off like a carefree young adventurer — climbing mountain peaks and exploring jungles. But in reality, the missionary harbored a deadly obsession with an isolated tribe in India he had first read about as a teen.

Chau spent years planning and training to travel illegally to remote North Sentinel Island on a mission to convert its residents to Christianity, including learning emergency medicine, and studying linguistics and cultural anthropology, his missionary group said. Though he knew the islanders had long violently resisted outsiders, he conducted a covert mission to the protected island this month. Police said that shortly after he arrived at the island this month, the tribe killed him. Indian authorities say they have yet to recover the body.

The death of the 26-year-old missionary from Washington state — who broke a raft of laws and put the health of the indigenous people at risk — has sparked international outrage, a heated debate about the protection of tribal communities and at least two investigations by authorities in India. It also has prompted soul-searching in the U.S. evangelical community, which has been debating whether Chau was a martyr, a fool or was afflicted by a messiah complex.

“God, I don’t want to die,” Chau scrawled in his journal while sitting in a fishing boat off the coast of the island where the North Sentinelese people live, shortly before he was killed. “WHO WILL TAKE MY PLACE IF I DO?”

-snip-

7 replies

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Highlight:

'He lost his mind': Slain missionary John Allen Chau planned for years to convert remote tribe (Original Post) Eugene Nov 2018 OP

Someone will take his place Cartoonist Nov 2018 #1

Fulfilling the Great Commission, I guess. MineralMan Nov 2018 #2

This makes the whole thing make a little more sense underpants Nov 2018 #3

He probably thought God would protect him. Mariana Nov 2018 #7

He was taught, like MOST Christians are, that evangelism is central to the Christian faith. trotsky Nov 2018 #4

"He chose poorly" atreides1 Nov 2018 #5

Christ directly contradicted himself on this subject. Mariana Nov 2018 #6

Cartoonist

(7,532 posts)

1. Someone will take his place

Reply to Eugene (Original post)

Wed Nov 28, 2018, 02:19 PM

Nov 2018

There's no shortage of fools.

MineralMan

(147,591 posts)

2. Fulfilling the Great Commission, I guess.

Reply to Eugene (Original post)

Wed Nov 28, 2018, 02:20 PM

Nov 2018

Some believe that Jesus will not return until everyone on the planet has heard the Gospel. Maybe the intrepid, but foolish, young man thought that tribe was the last group that hadn't heard the Word. I guess Jesus shouldn't be expected soon, then.

And now, the erstwhile missionary is no more.

underpants

(186,672 posts)

3. This makes the whole thing make a little more sense

Reply to Eugene (Original post)

Wed Nov 28, 2018, 02:23 PM

Nov 2018

My first impression was that he had to have known these people's violent history with outsiders. It had all the markings of a death mission.

Mariana

(15,120 posts)

7. He probably thought God would protect him.

Reply to underpants (Reply #3)

Wed Nov 28, 2018, 05:00 PM

Nov 2018

The fact that he survived the first couple of encounters may have made him believe that. We can speculate all day long about what the hell he was thinking when he set out the third time. My best guess is it was something like this: "If God didn't want me to do this, he would have let them kill me before."

trotsky

(49,533 posts)

4. He was taught, like MOST Christians are, that evangelism is central to the Christian faith.

Reply to Eugene (Original post)

Wed Nov 28, 2018, 02:23 PM

Nov 2018

Unconditionally.

Matthew 28:19-20 - "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

To Christians like Chau, the existence of people who haven't yet heard the "good news" is unbearable. Certainly Chau may have had mental health issues, but if he hadn't been taught how critical it was to evangelize his faith to the heathens, would he be alive today?

atreides1

(16,386 posts)

5. "He chose poorly"

Reply to Eugene (Original post)

Wed Nov 28, 2018, 02:29 PM

Nov 2018

Once again an evangelical chose arrogance over common sense and the teachings of Christ!!!

Matthew 10:14 And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town.

Luke 9:5 And wherever they do not receive you, when you leave that town shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.”

Mariana

(15,120 posts)

6. Christ directly contradicted himself on this subject.

Reply to atreides1 (Reply #5)

Wed Nov 28, 2018, 04:54 PM

Nov 2018

Trotsky was kind enough to provide Christ's opposite teaching in post #4.

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