Saints and Slavers: Stories of Missionaries

"Christ wanted love to be called his single commandment. This we owe to all men. Nobody is excepted.”

- Bartolomé de las Casas

In this episode I am joined by Conor Gaffey to discuss some of the most well known stories about Christian and Catholic missionaries. At turns revered and despised, missionaries remain as fascinating figures in modern storytelling. We discuss the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, as well as the films, The Mission, directed by Ronald Joffé and Silence, directed by Martin Scorsese. Taking these narratives as a starting point we discuss what it means to introduce Christianity to a culture, the failings and virtues of historical missions and what it means to be brought to the edge of faith.

 

Music: Ashton Manor by Kevin MacLeod

Hosts: Rachel Sherlock, Conor Gaffey

Follow us on social media: @seekingwatson, @ConorGaffey

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @riskingenchantmentpodcast

Find out more at www.rachelsherlock.com

 

Works Mentioned:

Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe

The Mission, directed by Roland Joffé

Silence, directed by Martin Scorsese

Decent Films Reviews: The Mission (1986)

Decent Films Reviews: Silence (2016)

 

What We're Enjoying at the Moment

Conor:

The Lion King (2019)

Spirit by Beyoncé

Rachel:

Nothing Arrived (Acoustic) by Villagers