I showed the movie “The Mission” to my students last night. I have seen it now about 20 times, and it never fails to challenge and disturb. The movie, which won the Palm D’or at the 1986 Cannes Film Festival, is the true story of what happened to the Guarani Indians following the Treaty of Madrid (1750) and the transference certain lands above the falls of the Paraguay River from the Spanish crown to Portugal. The harvesting, selling, and keeping of the Guarani as slaves was illegal in the Spanish territories. In Portugal’s territories, however such activities prospered (Brazil became the last western nation to outlaw slavery in 1872 – the United States, where we declared our belief that all are created equal, was the next to last western nation to abolish slavery). The movie is about the various responses men made, in the name of Jesus, to the plight of the Guarani. I show the movie to every college class I teach, because it gives us occasion to discuss so many topics: the unholy alliance between church and state, the rights of personhood, a Christian’s proper response to evil, the true nature of Grace.
One of the characters in the movie is a Captain Mendoza, an illegal slave trader who in a fit of passion kills his brother. The penance he assigns himself, as a Roman Catholic seeking forgiveness, is to drag the burden of his weapons up the falls to where the Guarani live. It is a torturous task, and a torturous one to watch – a perfect experience of our inability to find redemption through our own efforts, no matter how strenuous. When he reaches the high country where the Guarani live, muddy, exhausted, spent, they recognize him as the man who has killed their brothers and stolen their children. They put a knife to his throat, but they have learned about Jesus, so instead of killing him, they cut the burden from his back and throw it down the falls. It is a moment of true grace – of offering forgiveness because of Jesus.
Later, when the Guarani are threatened, the missionaries reject the authority of the Pope to stay behind and help them. Some meet the army of the Portugese with praise, but a boy has fetched Mendoza’s sword from the falls, and he raises a force to fight. I understand that response. It was the response Peter made in the Garden of Gethsemane when he cut off Malchus’ ear (probably not where he was aiming). But remember, Jesus said that was not the response his disciples were to make in defense of righteousness.
It makes sense though, to fetch one’s sword and fight. When the opposition will stop at nothing to defeat truth, how can truth triumph without meeting blow with blow, sword with sword? Well it can’t – if we define triumph as something earthly. Defining it in this way, though is to already be defeated. My kingdom is not of this world, if it were my disciples would be fighting that I might not be delivered up to the Jews, but as it is my kingdom is not of this realm (John18.36), Jesus says to Pilate. We can not often win here without using the weapons and tactics used here. Yet here is not where we belong, and here is not where we will be long. Hereafter is home, is where we are headed. A good cause, then, is not an excuse to do a bad thing.
For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh…(II Corinthians 10.4)
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness… (Ephesians 6.12)
