Ukuqala Kweecawa ETahiti

NGUMBHALI KAVUKANI! ETAHITI

EKUPHELENI kwenkulungwane ye-18, abantu baseYurophu baqalisa ukubonakalisa umdla kumsebenzi wobuvangeli. EBritani, uWilliam Carey, owathi kamva waba ngumthunywa wevangeli, wakhuthaza amaProtestanti ukuba ashumayele kumazwe ekungekashunyayelwa kuwo, kuquka iTahiti. Lo kaCarey wakhuthazwa ngamazwi uYesu awawathetha kubafundi bakhe ukuba benze abafundi abantu beentlanga zonke. (Mateyu 28:19, 20) Ngowe-1802, incwadi yombhali ongumFrentshi uFrançois-Auguste-René de Chateaubriand ethi, Le Génie du christianisme (The Genius of Christianity) nayo yakhuthaza umoya wobuvangeli kumaKatolika.

Kungekudala kwasekwa imibutho yabavangeli bamaKatolika nabamaProtestanti. Ngowe-1797 iLondon Missionary Society yathumela abavangeli abangama-29 eTahiti. Ngowe-1841 kwafika iqela elithile lamaKatolika elalibizwa ngokuba ziiPicpus Fathers, yaye kwiminyaka emithathu kamva kwafika amaMormon. Kodwa ke, kungabanga thuba lide, abaninzi kwaba bavangeli bayiyeka injongo yabo eyintloko yokufundisa abantu ngeBhayibhile baza babandakanyeka kwezopolitiko nakwezoshishino. Yintoni eyabangela oku?

Ubuhlobo Neearii

Ekuqaleni abantu abazange bazamkele iimfundiso zabavangeli bamaProtestanti. Omnye umbhali uthi “babethetha kakhulu ngokuthuthunjiswa esihogweni kunokukhuthaza abantu ukuba babe novelwano yaye bathandane.” Ngapha koko, aba bashumayeli babona ukuba akakho umntu ofuna ukubhaptizwa kuqala kuneearii, okanye iinkosi, ezaziphambili nakunqulo. Ngoko ke, aba bavangeli bagqiba kwelokuba baqale ngeenkokeli.

Enye inkokeli, ebizwa ngokuba nguPomare II, yabamkela abavangeli ngelijonge ukwenza ushishino nabo nokuze bayincede nakwezomkhosi. Ukanti nabo babejonge ukuba uPomare angabanceda kumsebenzi wabo wobuvangeli. Ngaphezu koko, kwasekuqaleni abavangeli babebandakanyekile kushishino lwabantu baseTahiti noomatiloshe ababedla ngokuza kuthenga.

Enethemba lokuba abavangeli baza kumnceda akwazi ukufumana izixhobo, lo kaPomare waba nomdla kwisigidimi sabo, yaye ekuqaleni kowe-1811 wacela ukubhaptizwa. Ngonyaka olandelayo wabhala ileta ecela ukuba abhaptizwe. Noko ke, kangangeminyaka esibhozo, isicelo sakhe sakhatywa, kuba abavangeli babefuna ukubona enoba uphila ngokuvisisana nemilinganiselo yeBhayibhile kusini na.

Ebudeni belo xesha, uPomare wamiselwa njengokumkani kwisiqithi saseTahiti nakwezinye iziqithi eziselumelwaneni, ezibizwa ngokuba yiSociety Islands. Waphinda wacela ukubhaptizwa. Ekugqibeleni, ngowe-1819 abavangeli bambhaptiza.

Impembelelo yakhe yabonakala ngokukhawuleza. Kwiminyaka nje emihlanu, phantse bonke abantu abahlala kwiSociety Islands, abakwintshona yeTuamotu Archipelago, nakwisiqingatha seAustral Islands babezibiza ngokuba bangamaKristu.

UMthetho KaPomare

“Ukuguquka” kwabemi abaninzi kwezi ziqithi kwabangela ukuba kutshintshwe imilinganiselo nemithetho eyayisetyenziswa ngaphambili. Ukuze akwazi ukwenza oko uPomare wayethembele kubavangeli. Kakade ke, abavangeli babefuna ukutshintsha imithetho eyayisetyenziswa nokuba negunya kubukumkani. Ekugqibeleni, abavangeli basamkela isicelo sikaPomare baza baseka imithetho eyayiquka, ngokutsho kwenye incwadi, “imithetho ekumgaqo-siseko waseBritani, imigaqo yezibhalo neyamaKristu.” Emva kokuba le mithetho iye yahlaziywa ngokuphindaphindiweyo, ukumkani wayimisela eTahiti. Kamva yabizwa ngokuba nguMthetho kaPomare.

UMthetho kaPomare waba nempembelelo nakwiziqithi ezikufuphi, apho kwakusetyenziswa imithetho efana nale. Lo mthetho wawufuna kugcinwe iSabatha; abantu babesohlwaywa ngokukrexeza, ngokutshata nabantu ababini, ngobusela nangemvukelo; umntu wayegwetyelwa ukufa ngokubulala omnye umntu okanye umntwana. Zonke iindlela zokuzonwabisa ezingamanyala zazichasene nomthetho.

Ukubandakanyeka Kwezopolitiko

Incwadi ethi Where the Waves Fall ithi abavangeli abangamaProtestanti “babengene zwabha kwezopolitiko. Babengengobavangeli nje kuphela, kodwa babephambili kwezomkhosi, kwezoshishino, kwezopolitiko nasekumiseleni imithetho kwezi ziqithi.” Ngokufanayo abavangeli bamaMormon nabamaKatolika babephambili kwimibandela yasekuhlaleni neyezopolitiko kwiziqithi ababehlala kuzo. Kwisiqithi saseTubuai, esikwiAustral Islands, omnye umvangeli ongumMormon wathi: “Urhulumente uphantsi kwecawa. . . . mna ndiyinkulumbuso yesi siqithi.” NakwiGambier Islands, amaKatolika ayenempembelelo efanayo, omnye umfundisi wayeligosa likarhulumente.

Umbhali-mbali uClaire Laux uthi kunokuba bafundise abantu ngeBhayibhile, abavangeli “babeshumayela ngezopolitiko.” Babecinga ukuba le yeyona ndlela iphumelelayo ekufikeleleni iintliziyo zabantu. Ngaloo ndlela, abavangeli benza into eyahlukileyo koko babekuyalelwe yicawa. Sekunjalo, icawa nezopolitiko zisengumtya nethunga nangoku kwiFrench Polynesia.

Impembelelo Yezoshishino

Unjingalwazi uNiel Gunson weYunivesithi yaseCanberra eOstreliya uthi abanye abavangeli “babandakanyeka kwezopolitiko kuba babenomdla kwezoshishino.” Abavangeli abaninzi babeshishina—bethengisa, beqeshisa besenza neenqanawa. Abanye babelima iarrowroot, ikofu, umqhaphu, ummoba necuba.

Izinto zazibahambela kakuhle abavangeli kwezoshishino kangangokuba kangangeminyaka engama-25 ngabo ababesenza ushishino phakathi kweOstreliya neTahiti, ngokukodwa kwinyama yehagu nakwioli yekhokhonathi. Noko ke abanye abavangeli babengayithandi le nto yaye bacela iLondon Missionary Society ukuba ilungise le meko. Abanye babevakalelwa kukuba ushishino lwalubanceda kumsebenzi wabo wobuvangeli. Njani?

Kwasekufikeni kwabo, abavangeli basebenzisa ubugcisa babo nezinto abazithengisayo ukuze batsale abemi balapho. Bekholelwa ukuba “impucuko” inokwenza abantu bonwabe, abavangeli babekhuthaza abantu ukuba bazibhokoxe emsebenzini baze baqokelele izinto eziphathekayo, besithi ukuba nezinto eziphathekayo kubonisa ukuba umntu usikelelwa nguThixo.

Ngaba Yinguquko Yokwenene?

Umbhali-mbhali weLondon Missionary Society wathi ukuguquka kwabantu abaninzi kwesi sixeko “kwakungabangelwa kukuba befuna ukwenza ukuthanda kukaThixo yaye babengaguquki ngokusuka entliziyweni.” UGunson uthi, abantu baseTahiti babeguquka kuba befuna ukukholisa uPomare II, bephenjelelwa nayimikhwa (kungekhona iinkolelo) yabavangeli abangamaNgesi.”

Abemi abaninzi baseTahiti babengamaKristu nje ngegama, yaye kungabanga thuba lide, babuyela kubuhedeni, kwihlelo lonqulo elibizwa ngokuba yiMamaia. Kweli hlelo lonqulo elalidibanisa ubuKristu nezithethe, kwakukho nabantu basebukhosini.

Kwakukho ukungavisisani phakathi kwamaProtestanti ewodwa—oko kukuthi amaTshetshi, abalandeli bakaCalvin namaWesile—yaye amaProtestanti ayesilwa namaKatolika. Incwadi ethi The Cambridge History of the Pacific Islanders ithi: “Abemi balapho babengawuboni umahluko phakathi kweenkonzo ezahlukahlukeneyo, yaye babengasazi isizathu sokuba kubekho ubutshaba phakathi kwabantu abathi bangamakholwa.” Ngokomzekelo, xa kwafika abavangeli ababini abangamaKatolika eTahiti, bagxothwa ngoko nangoko ngenxa yomyalelo womfo odumileyo owayefudula engumvangeli wamaProtestanti. Ngenxa yoku kwaphantse kwabakho imfazwe phakathi kweBritani neFransi. Ekugqibeleni, iBritani yavuma ukuba iTahiti ibe phantsi “kwenkuselo” yeFransi.

Into Eyaba Yingenelo

Abavangeli abaliqela bafundisa abantu ukufunda nokubhala yaye baphelisa ukubulawa kweentsana, ukutya inyama yomntu, nokubingelela ngabantu. Nangona abanye abavangeli babengqongqo gqitha, bayiphucula indlela ababeziphethe ngayo abemi bezi ziqithi.

Eyona nto intle abayenzayo abavangeli kukuguqulela iBhayibhile kwisiTahiti. Ngaphezu koko, bafundisa abantu balapho igama likaThixo, abasalaziyo nanamhla oku.a—INdumiso 83:18.

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‘Aniyonxalenye Yehlabathi’

Abalandeli bakaYesu Kristu bokwenene bakhokelwa ngala mazwi awathethwa nguYesu. (Yohane 15:19) Eneneni, lo mgaqo ubaluleke kakhulu kubo kangangokuba uYesu wabathandazela kuThixo, wathi: “Abayonxalenye yehlabathi, kanye njengoko nam ndingeyonxalenye yehlabathi.” (Yohane 17:16) Ngenxa yoko, uYesu akazange abandakanyeke kwezopolitiko okanye azisebenzise ukuze afumane abafundi abaninzi. Kwakhona wawugatya umoya wokusukela izinto eziphathekayo—nto leyo ebonisa umoya wehlabathi. Kunoko, wakhuthaza abantu ukuba baphile ubomi obulula ukuze bazenzele ulwalamano oluhle noThixo. (Mateyu 6:22-24, 33, 34) Abalandeli bakhe bokwenyaniso baxelisa umzekelo wakhe.

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Ukufika kwabavangeli bokuqala, ngowe-1797

[Inkcazelo]

The Granger Collection, New York

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Umvangeli kunye nabantu baseTahiti abaguqukileyo malunga nowe-1845

[Umfanekiso okwiphepha 14]

UKumkani Pomare II

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ITahiti nesixeko sasePapeete

[Inkcazelo]

Photo courtesy of Tahiti Tourisme

[Inkcazelo Ngemifanekiso ekwiphepha 14]

Left: Photo by Henry Guttmann/Getty Images; right: Collection du Musée de Tahiti et de ses Îles, Punaauia, Tahiti