Latin America

Between 1492 and 1504, Italian explorer Christopher Columbus navigated four Spanish transatlantic maritime expeditions. The aim was to find a westward route to Asia; instead Columbus discovered the Americas, the New World. 

Theology professor Adrian Hasting, writes concerning the origins of Christianity in South America: ‘The Christianity of South America was, primarily, a precise transportation of the Catholicism of the Iberian Peninsula [Spain and Portugal] in the age of the ‘Catholic Kings’ – Isabella and Ferdinand, Charles V, and Philip II.’ (A World History of Christianity, Edited by Adrian Hasting, Cassell, London, 1999)

As Hasting notes, these were the days of Spanish power, when Spain viewed itself as “the standard-bearer of Catholicism”.

The majority of Latin America is Roman Catholic, much of it nominal and syncretistic (blended with Indian traditional religion). Amongst the indigenous peoples, various Aztec, Incan, and Mayan practises continue, although much of it is blended with elements of Catholicism. Meanwhile, evangelical Protestantism is growing everywhere.

In some parts of Latin America, Christians suffer persecution despite the fact that religious freedom is guaranteed in their Constitutions. It is criminal persecution, enabled by gross insecurity, and encouraged by a culture of impunity.

The question of whether or not Christians who are killed for opposing corruption and criminality are victims of religious persecution is contentious and complicated.

Consider this statement in the US State Department’s 2020 report on International Religious Freedom concerning Colombia:

“There were continued media and NGO reports that illegal armed groups killed and threatened community leaders, including members of religious groups, and targeted them for extortion. Because many religious leaders were also involved in politics and social activism, it was often difficult to categorize many incidents as being solely based on religious identity.”

While it is true that hitmen and illegal armed groups will kill anyone – irrespective of religion – who threatens their operations, it is also true that the Christians they kill are motivated by religious conviction.

Christians are compelled by their religion – or more precisely, by the Holy Spirit of God, as they seek to obey scripture and follow/imitate Jesus Christ – to speak out and act against evil and for good, no matter the risk. Furthermore, Christians have a divine mandate to exercise compassion and improve the lot of the “harassed and helpless” (Matthew 9:35-38). The Bible’s Old and New Testaments are replete with exhortations to pursue righteousness and justice, to be advocates and peacemakers, and to be loving and caring neighbours to all (The Parable of the Good Samaritan, Luke 10:25-37). While some Christians do this as pastors, priests, missionaries and other religious workers; others do this as Christian lawyers, journalists, politicians, environmentalists, and human rights activists. It can be very dangerous work for followers of Jesus, whose own path was never one of self-preservation, but self-sacrifice. 

 “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (Jesus, in John 15:13 NLT).

Christian history is replete with Christian men and women who were killed on account of their political and social action. They were killed for practising their religion, whether their killers saw it that way or not.