In August of the year 2005, Reverend Pat Robertson, a U.S. televangelist who hosts Christian Broadcasting Network‘s The 700 Club, made a controversial statement against President Hugo Chavez. This statement, which called for the assassination of Chavez, has had a lasting impact on religion in Venezuela. On the August 22nd broadcast of The 700 Club, Robertson stated:
"You know, I don't know about this doctrine of assassination, but if he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it. It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war. And I don't think any oil shipments will stop. But this man is a terrific danger…This is in our sphere of influence, so we can't let this happen. We have the Monroe Doctrine, we have other doctrines that we have announced. And without question, this is a dangerous enemy to our south, controlling a huge pool of oil, that could hurt us very badly. We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability. We don't need another $200 billion war to get rid of one, you know, strong-arm dictator. It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with." (“Robertson Called for the Assassination of Venezuela's President”)
Basically, Robertson views Chavez as a potential global threat and, therefore, feels that he must be taken out of power by the United States. He feels that this is the only way to prevent his oil-rich country from becoming "a launching pad for communist infiltration and Muslim extremism." ("Robertson Calls for Chavez's Assassination”) Although Robertson apologized for his statement a few hours after it was broadcasted, it still had profound effects on the relationship between Venezuela and the U.S, and in turn on religion.
In reaction to the statement, “Chavez blasted Robertson as “a terrorist,” and said his government was interested in pursuing extradition of the U.S. minister.” (Kozloff) Not long after this controversy, in October of 2005, Chavez made the decision to expel the New Tribes Mission, an American missionary group, from his country. He said “the missionaries were "imperialists" and he felt "ashamed" at their presence in indigenous areas of Venezuela.” ("Chavez Moves Against US Preachers”) He believed they were linked to the CIA and were spying on Venezuela in order to exploit the indigenous population. In addition, he also accused them of violating Venezuela’s national sovereignty because of their traveling in and out of the country without appropriate permission from the Venezuelan government. According to Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel, the Roman Catholic Church was in favor of Chavez’s decision to expel them. He stated, “We have the cardinal's blessing in this decision.” (Alford) This serves to show that the Church is being tied into the political affairs of the country, cutting down the barrier between Church and state.
The expulsion of these missionaries has impacted religion inside of Venezuela, especially with regard to the spiritual lives of the indigenous people. New Tribes Mission “is one of Latin America's biggest missionary organizations and has 3,200 workers and operates in 17 countries, with operations in West Africa and South-East Asia too.” (“Chavez Moves Against US Preachers”) These missionaries served to preach Christianity to the non-Christian indigenous population of Venezuela. They planted churches and translated the text of the Bible. Therefore, their expulsion has stagnated the spread of the faith to the tribal regions of the nation. Furthermore, many tribal people were angered by this decision. “Thousands of tribal people in Venezuela had rallied early November in support of the NTS, saying the government's decision was made on false pretenses.” (Weinberg) Without the missionaries, the tribal people are not going to be able to get accustomed to and come to a full understanding of Christianity. As a result, there will be an inevitable divide between the religious beliefs of the majority of the Venezuelan population and the indigenous groups within the country.
Pat Robertson’s statement calling for the assassination of Chavez not only stirred controversy during that time, but also has impacted religion in Venezuela for the long run. The major direct outcome of this controversy was the expulsion of the New Tribes missionaries from Venezuela. This expulsion had two significant effects. First, it showed that the Church was becoming more and more involved in the political affairs of Venezuela. But, more importantly, it effected the lives of the indigenous people because there were no longer individuals to preach the predominant faith to them. This could eventually lead to major religious rifts between the mainstream population and the indigenous population of Venezuela. This divide is not necessarily going to help out the country which is already economically unstable because of its dependence on oil.
Works Cited
Alford, Deann. "Venezuela to Expel New Tribes Mission | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction." ChristianityToday.com | Magazines, News, Church Leadership & Bible Study. 14 Oct. 2005. Web. 17 May 2011.http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/octoberweb-only/53.0a.html.http://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/1430.http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/200508220006.
"Chavez Moves Against US Preachers." BBC News - Home. 12 Oct. 2005. Web. 17 May 2011. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4336660.stm>."Venezuela Religions." World Map, Map of the World. Web. 17 May 2011. http://www.mapsofworld.com/venezuela/religions.html.
Kozloff, Nikolas. "Venezuela’s War of Religion | Venezuelanalysis.com." Venezuelanalysis.com | Venezuela News, Views, and Analysis. 24 Oct. 2005. Web. 17 May 2011.
"Robertson Called for the Assassination of Venezuela's President." Media Matters for America. 22 Aug. 2005. Web. 17 May 2011.
"Robertson Calls for Chavez's Assassination - U.S. & World - FOXNews.com." FoxNews.com - Breaking News | Latest News | Current News. 23 Aug. 2005. Web. 17 May 2011. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,166478,00.html.
Weinberg, Bill. "Venezuela: Chavez Expels New Tribes Mission | World War 4 Report." World War 4 Report | Deconstructing the War on Terrorism. Web. 17 May 2011. <http://www.ww4report.com/node/1579>.
There is no doubt about it that Pat Robertson's statements were unprofessional, demeaning, and had a major impact on religion in Venezuela.
ReplyDeleteHowever, while Chavez claims the New Tribes were spies, linked to the CIA, and violated the country's national sovereignty, that is simply accusations on a missionary group that had no dealings with Robertson. Nita Zelenak, the spokeswoman for New Tribes stated in reply that "We're not involved with any government agencies, not involved with the CIA, not involved with uranium mining. Our purpose there is to help the people.' Specifically addressing Chavez's accusations, she said, 'Any kind of air travel we do, we always do within the guidelines of what the government allows. We always file reports.'" (Alford).
It is quite probable Chavez expelled them just for effect and made up these false statements about New Tribes to justify his expulsion.
Alford, Deann. "Venezuela to Expel New Tribes Mission | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction." ChristianityToday.com | Magazines, News, Church Leadership & Bible Study. 14 Oct. 2005. Web. 10 May 2011. .
ReplyDeleteChavez definitely disliked the New Tribes Mission, for he saw it as an imperialist group. While Chavez maintains that he ousted the New Tribes Mission for the sake of the indigenous people, he really saw the missionary group as a political threat to his power, for they were gaining support by “[helping] indigenous tribes during hard times when aid from government authority was scarce or nonexistent.”(MSNBC).
ReplyDeleteIn addition, while the Catholic Church consented to the expulsion of the New Tribes Mission, there has been a sharp divide between the Catholic Church and Chavez. The Church strongly disagrees with the president's infringement upon human rights and sees him as a threat to democracy with his increasingly communist views. Archbishop Ubaldo Santana states that Chavez's agenda "has caused growing economic, social, and cultural polarization." (CNA)
Furthermore, although some of the indigenous tribes will not be introduced to Christianity, it will probably not cause religious divisions. Venezuela has been, and continues to be, a mainly Catholic country with other religions in it, that do not come into contest with one another.
Amanda Chivil^^
ReplyDeleteAgency, Catholic News. "Venezuelan Bishops Warn Chavez Is Jeopardizing Democratic Society :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)." Catholic News Agency. 9 June 2009. Web. 17 May 2011.
"Venezuelans Protest Chavez Missionary Threat - World News - Americas - Msnbc.com." Msnbc.com - Breaking News, Science and Tech News, World News, US News, Local News- Msnbc.com. 28 Oct. 2005. Web. 17 May 2011. .
To Amanda S. from Shereen-
ReplyDeleteChavez’s accusations of the New Tribes missionaries being spies affiliated with the CIA definitely has no basis in truth. The missionaries’ primary goal was to preach Christianity to the non-Christian indigenous people within Venezuela. They never attempted to get involved in the political sphere of the country. Therefore, viewing them as a threat to his political power is absurd on Chavez’s part. As you stated, he probably just made up these false accusations and expelled them to ensure that he is the dominant figure in Venezuela, and to show that no one can come in the way of that.
To Amanda C. from Shereen-
It is quite obvious, as you stated, that Chavez did not oust the New Tribes Mission for the sake of the indigenous people. Although the missionaries never even attempted to get involved in the country’s political matters, it is true that in Chavez’s point of view, the New Tribes Mission was a potential threat to his power. Therefore, he found it necessary to expel them from his area.
The expulsion of these missionaries may not cause overwhelming religious divisions within the region, since it is predominantly Catholic. However, without the missionaries, the Christian faith will not be as far-reaching as it once was. There are no longer individuals to preach the Christian values and beliefs to the indigenous populations in isolated regions of the country. So, as a result, Christianity will not be as widespread.
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ReplyDeleteAnasha Green
ReplyDeleteHugo Chavez’ decision to remove the New Tribes Mission from Venezuela was not a move that is not religiously based, but instead politically based.
Two months after the statements by Pat Robertson, Chavez made and announcement that he was planning to remove the evangelical group, the New Tribes Mission, from the country. This was because the presence of the New Tribes was a “true imperialist invasion” (Kozloff). This refers to Chavez’ belief that the New Tribes were not stationed in Venezuela to help the indigenous peoples, but to instead serve as helpers of the United States government in taking Chavez’ power away from him. Had the New Tribes been from another nation, Chavez would not have been threatened, because of the fact he does not view other countries as problems as much as he views the United States as a problem. Also, had the organization not been religiously based, Chavez still would have wanted them to leave because he believes any large organization coming from the United States may be classified as “working with the CIA” (Kozloff).
Kozloff, Nikolas. "Venezuela’s War of Religion | Venezuelanalysis.com." Venezuelanalysis.com | Venezuela News, Views, and Analysis. Web. 17 May 2011. .
To Anasha from Shereen-
ReplyDeleteChavez's decision to expel the New Tribes missionaries, as you stated, definitely did not have any religious basis.
As you said, the sole reason for Chavez's expulsion of the missionaries was his ideology that they posed a potential threat to his power. The fact that they are from the U.S. furthers his fear, because the U.S. has had a constant reputation of interfering in other countries' affairs. He felt that any organization coming into his country from the U.S. was sent to spy on him by the CIA. Like you said, If they were from a different nation, his actions might not have been as harsh.