Unsettling Truths

Unsettling Truths
THE ONGOING, DEHUMANIZING LEGACY OF THE DOCTRINE OF DISCOVERY
By Mark Charles and Soong-Chan Rah
Published by InterVarsity Press, copyright 2019

As I type this reflection for this particular space, it is Indigenous Heritage Month—November—a time when we Americans celebrate the holiday of Thanksgiving. Even typing the words Indigenous Heritage Month can open up potential controversy… something we are supposed to avoid engaging in at holidays. However, I can no longer sit back and remain silent on this topic since reading this book, Unsettling Truths. I first came upon this book in July of 2022 and read it immediately. I also met the author, Mark Charles, and listened to him speak two evenings in a row when we lived in Detroit, MI. In this space, I will focus on my reflection of the book and save additional thoughts for a potential blog entry. You can learn more about Mark Charles on YouTube and his podcast “My Second Cup of Coffee”. Mark also provides plenty of spaces for discussing this book or setting up a book group. His website is https://wirelesshogan.com

Reading this book might just have been the most important portal I have come through as an American so far. It is a true paradigm shifter! The authors set the historical table and introduce the reader to the “Doctrine of Discovery”, a set of Papal Bulls that date back to the mid and late 1400’s. These Papal Bulls gave the authority of The Church to European nations to commit unspeakable acts. The authors go on to show how this “Doctrine” worked its way into American law and land seizure… and even how and why we are prone to view one another as “other” that continues today.

I have been in a place of what I call “un/re-learning history”. This book has been foundational in helping me, or any reader, to see a side of history that has not been talked about in school curriculums, or is even a part of cultural common knowledge. The authors focus on the healing of people through truth telling even when we find it unsettling. So many voices have been silenced throughout history because the victors have been the ones who get to tell the stories that go on to become the history we are told. The authors work to bring voice to the silenced and focus on building common memory as a path toward healing.

Today, when we have so much division in so many areas of the world and between individuals… finding common memory for all might just be a place in which we can heal. After reading this book, I think we need to unsettle some of the truths we have been led to believe.

I’m so thankful that I read this book. I’m so thankful to the authors for the work they put into carefully researching and communicating these unsettling truths so that my view could be expanded. I am thankful for the opportunity to reflect on what Indigenous Heritage Month is and can be. I am thankful for those who have been stewards of this land on which I am able to call home. May we all find ways to build a better common memory even when it’s based on unsettling truths.