Choose a passage from the story which held significance to you and comment on it.

"You may be called upon to make the first advance into the midst of entire tribes that have never known any kind of government control, where people are a law unto themselves and where savagery is the way of life..." (page 69/70)

This passage intrigued me in the novel "Peace Child" because it shows how an untouched, uncivilized culture without law accepts and embraces cruelty, and demonstrates that treachery is honoured. Is demonic behaviour man's instinct and natural way of being? This made me question the impulses which exist among human beings; should we live by the rules, in a peaceful way? Or seek out instant gratification through violence to exhibit our sovereignty among others? In the case of the Sawi tribe and Don Richardson it is savagery vs. civilization. Because of the way I've been raised (back to the world of cell phones and french fries) I have been accustomed and been persuaded to believe that savagery is evil and the civilized world is good - much like Tolstoy's belief where Christ is light and secularism is darkness. Today we think we are decent, 'we are the kind of people who would never dismount and perform sadistic cruel practices.' We only know what we know - the passage strained the wheels turning in my head. Would I too have been like the Sawi if I had been born into the world lacking government control? Do you think you would have adapted to their way way of life - or do you strongly believe you have a moral compass within you which would have led you in the right direction?

"All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood."

-Article 1 from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

What should society do for uncivilized cultures like the Sawi?

I believe we should only interfere with uncivilized nations as a last resort or if they are harming each other - such as the Sawi practice of Cannibalism and fattening for friendship. There is no doubt that the 'modern' world has much to offer the 'stone tribes' living vastly among the world, however I do not agree with forcing our beliefs among others. Christopher Columbus was the first person to set foot in the New World...not including the inhabitants which had been there for at least 10 000 years. In a diary entry he wrote :

"October 12, 1492:
It appears to me, that the people are ingenious, and would be good servants and I am of opinion that they would very readily become Christians, as they appear to have no religion."

It seems as if Don Richardson is a modern day Christopher Columbus. Maybe he too will one day have a day marked in his name among the tribes of the Irian jungle. I do not agree with him going to the Sawi tribes and telling them the way life ought to be lived. Believing in Jesus is not instinct - not wanting to die is. He could have taught morals and ethics to the people through the stories of the bible however not have told the people that they are real. Society is becoming blindly fanatical and narcissistic. Richardson compares himself to Jesus and John the Baptist many times in this novel. "John the Baptist's communication problem was a cinch compared to mine...It looked as though God had led me to the end of the earth and left me alone to grapple with a problem greater than and He had ever required prophets or apostles to face." Don Richardson is representing the way society would go in there - for their own interest. The traders go into these uncivilized tribes looking for raw materials which prove useful to them, missionaries enter these cultures hoping to convert some 'savages.' Everyone seems to be in it for their own interest.

Society should expose these uncivilized communities to the modern way of life - which they (most likely) may one day join. Society should also help them with their material needs. However if they are comfortable with their culture and choose not to join ours we should leave them alone. If they are 'performing' another Rwanda, that is when we should use force and power and not sit back and watch the destruction and slaying of the people. By instinct the human body will fight to survive - this is why force must be issued if they do not follow this basic instinct. Overall education should be provided to all uncivilized and civilized nations - because this is how we will one day all unite in the world of cellphones and french fries - whether we like it or not.

How do you relate to faith?

Now here is a question that has come up since the Golden Age; What is faith? Opportunely we now have the Webster's dictionary, and it will state that faith is '1. A strong belief in a supernatural power or powers that control human destiny 2. Complete confidence in a person or plan 3. Institution to express belief in a divine power 4.Loyalty or allegiance to a cause or a person'

TCIS has been one of the most impressionable religious experiences of my youth. I have never questioned God so much in my entire life, because I had never really had to think about God or the whole blind faith that goes along with it. I have always been a skeptic and remain a secularist. However, seeing the faith that rises over the Christian community compelled me to gain knowledge and introduce myself to the Bible. My faith- or lack of it- prefers to read the Bible as if it were written by man rather than a supernatural being. One does not have to read the Bible and soak in its literal truth to appreciate the authors visions. To me, the Bible widens a world of morals and teachings, an understanding towards human nature, and most importantly for me it is a literary gift given to humanity from the translations made in the 17Th century.

I do not understand when people tell me they are praying for me to gain faith in God. There is not a specific moment when I stopped believing in God. I stopped believing because of the lack of evidence, for the same reasons I stopped believing in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. To me God is an energy which surrounds all living things - maybe to me God is just atoms. I do not ponder the unwarranted, immoral acts of the world, I am able to see everything as a result of nature and logic or as a result of human nature. The greatest gift man has been given is the ability to think and with that ability can come change. Don Richardson brought about change, and his ability to think and use his faith helped him do this. Some people need faith, it helps them along and makes the world a better place. But for me? ...I prefer the term free thinker.