The Broken Covenant
Christianity, Violence, and the Betrayal of Native Peoples
This ebook may not meet accessibility standards and may not be fully compatible with assistive technologies.
The Broken Covenant
Christianity, Violence, and the Betrayal of Native Peoples
For generations, Christianity was wielded as a weapon against Indigenous peoples—justifying land theft, cultural erasure, and brutal policies of forced assimilation. From the Doctrine of Discovery to the horrors of Indian boarding schools, the faith that promised salvation became a tool of conquest.
In The Broken Covenant, Matthew B. Scraper, a citizen of the Cherokee Nation and former United Methodist minister, unpacks the deep and lasting damage Christianity inflicted upon Native communities. Drawing from historical records, personal experience, and Indigenous resistance movements, he exposes the ways Christianity justified violence and betrayed the very people it claimed to redeem.
This book is not just an indictment of the past—it is a call for truth, justice, and the reclamation of Indigenous spiritual sovereignty. With unflinching honesty, Scraper traces the legacy of Christian missionization and its ongoing effects on Native identity, while also uplifting the voices of those who have resisted and survived.
For those who have wrestled with faith, history, and identity, The Broken Covenant is a vital read—a necessary reckoning with the past and a vision for an Indigenous future free from the chains of colonial religion.
Details
- Publication Date
- Jun 23, 2025
- Language
- English
- ISBN
- 9781300259046
- Category
- Religion & Spirituality
- Copyright
- All Rights Reserved - Standard Copyright License
- Contributors
- By (author): Matthew Scraper
Specifications
- Format
- EPUB
Keywords
Cherokee ChristianityCherokee spiritual sovereigntyChristianity and assimilationIndigenous theologyCherokee religion historyChristian missions CherokeeCherokee Trail of Tears faithIndigenous resistance ChristianityNative American religious identityDecolonizing Christian theologyMatrilineal Cherokee governanceCherokee creation storiesChristian colonization of Native AmericansBrainerd Mission School CherokeeForced conversion Native peoplesUntetlvnvhi Cherokee GodCherokee ancestral ceremoniesCherokee boarding school traumaReclaiming Indigenous spiritualityHow Christianity affected Cherokee identityCherokee resistance to Christian assimilationHistory of Christian missions among the CherokeeImpact of boarding schools on Cherokee spiritualityDeconstructing Christian dominance in Native historyCommunity-centered Cherokee theologyCherokee beliefs before European contactCherokee traditional vs. Christian moralityRole of missionaries in Native cultural erasureRebuilding Cherokee religious sovereigntyIndigenous resilience and faithSpiritual decolonization journeyNative identity and Christian harmReturning to sacred Cherokee ways