Characterizing the Religious Encounter between Moravians and Saramakas

Characterizing the Religious wreak between Moravians and SaramakasWhen Moravians in Germany sent three missionaries to Suriname in 1765 to witness to the Saramakas, 2 groups with unique and fundamentally different cultural, social, and religious beliefs and structures met. During the course of their stay, the Moravians were hounded by infirmity and disappointed by the poor reception of the gospel meanwhile, the Saramakas were plagued with inter-tribal rivalries and poor relations with the white government officials and plantation owners, with whom they maintained an unsteady peace. These circumstances, as well(p) as the many ways in which Moravian and Saramaka expectations and social behavior differed, created a barrier between the two groups. Because the Moravians entered Saramaka nightspot in small poesy and with no pretense of using political force or fiscal bribery (the latter of which the Saramakas would likely have accepted) to force conversions, the extent of their deviate on Saramaka religion and culture was limited. Though there was some cultural exchange, including the adoption of European manufactured goods into Saramaka lifespan and the adoption of some Saramaka medical examination treatments by the Moravians, for the Moravians and for the majority of Saramakas, the religious encounter was a meeting of mutually closed worlds. For a handful of Saramakas, including Alabi, an apparently true conversion took place. In addition to the few converts, there were a small number (Brother Wietz reports dozen in 1779) of Saramakas who came to Christian services regularly, and thus were interested in and mayhap persuaded to some degree by the missionaries message, scarce made no lading to or identification with Christianity and c... ...vian carriage certainly changed the lives of a few Saramakas, but did not make a great impact on Saramaka society as a whole. The missionaries who died or returned to Germany did not manage to build relations hips with the Saramaka friendship as a whole and could not count Suriname as nonpareil of their fruitful mission endeavors. Conversion was rare, and the syncretism formed after the Moravians introduced Christianity was admonished by the Moravians themselves and perfunctory in any case. The current presence of Christianity, or some syncretistic form, among a minority of Saramakas is probably not derived from the Moravians. Though Christian stories and the Moravian presence will never be forgotten because of their importance in the life of the gaama Alabi, the importance of the encounter with Moravians is restricted to a specific place and eon in Saramaka history.