The "Liars for Christ" frequently claim that President Thomas Jefferson "signed three separate acts setting aside government lands for the sole use of religious groups and setting aside government lands so that Moravian missionaries might be assisted in “promoting Christianity.”
First, the lands in question weren’t set aside. The lands were technically “reserved for the sole use of the Christian Indians, who were formerly settled there, or the remains of that society, as may, in the judgment of the Geographer, be sufficient for them to cultivate.”
The land to be reserved was in Ohio, and was to be vested in the Moravians "for the sole use" of the “Christian Indians,” which included “Killbuck and his descendants, and the Nephew and descendants of the late Captain white Eyes, Delaware Chiefs who have distinguished themselves as friends to the cause of America.”
In summary, the purpose of the land trust vested in the Moravians, by the U. S. Government, for the benefit of the Christian Indians, was not to promote Christianity as claimed by the “Liars For Jesus.” It was “for the sole use of the Christian Indians who were formerly settled there…as may… be sufficient for them to cultivate".
The Moravians were pacifist Christian missionaries from Germany who “Christianized” some Delaware Indians in Pennsylvania in 1742. The Indians became known as the "Christian Indians" as well as successful farmers on land in Pennsylvania. The Christians of Pennsylvania eventually ran the Indians off of their land; so the Indians moved to Ohio and created another successful agricultural community.
The Christian Indians, numbering about 400, agreed not to take up the hatchet against the Americans during the War for Independence in exchange for the promise of the Continental Congress to grant them, after the war, official title to their land. In 1781, the Indians were forced off their land in Ohio by the British and removed to the south shore of Lake Erie where they were left to starve. In 1782, the godly Christian men of the Pennsylvania Militia murdered ninety of the Christian Indians, including women and children, when they returned to their fields in Ohio searching for food. The method of execution was to bash the Indian’s heads in with large wooded mallets. The surviving Indians scattered.
When the war ended the Moravians attempted to round up the surviving Indians and held them to reclaim their land in Ohio, official title to which, had been promised them by the Continental Congress if they remained neutral during the war.
The Moravian believed that the Indians were being threatened by some Americans not to return to their land. Therefore, the Moravians asked Congress to convey the land to the Moravians in trust to cut off any hope of the Americans, who were believed to be threatening the Indians, to gain title to the land. Congress complied with the Moravian’s request in 1787.
The efforts of the Moravians to round the Indians up and settle them permanently on the land in Ohio failed due to a variety of reasons detailed in an 1822 report to Congress. The Moravians conveyed the land back to the U. S. in the 1820's.
PS: The name of the Pennsylvania corporation, formed by the Moravians, to hold the land trust, included the phrase, "for the propagation of Christianity among the Indians." The "Liars For Christ" always neglect to inform their victims of that fact.
First, the lands in question weren’t set aside. The lands were technically “reserved for the sole use of the Christian Indians, who were formerly settled there, or the remains of that society, as may, in the judgment of the Geographer, be sufficient for them to cultivate.”
The land to be reserved was in Ohio, and was to be vested in the Moravians "for the sole use" of the “Christian Indians,” which included “Killbuck and his descendants, and the Nephew and descendants of the late Captain white Eyes, Delaware Chiefs who have distinguished themselves as friends to the cause of America.”
In summary, the purpose of the land trust vested in the Moravians, by the U. S. Government, for the benefit of the Christian Indians, was not to promote Christianity as claimed by the “Liars For Jesus.” It was “for the sole use of the Christian Indians who were formerly settled there…as may… be sufficient for them to cultivate".
The Moravians were pacifist Christian missionaries from Germany who “Christianized” some Delaware Indians in Pennsylvania in 1742. The Indians became known as the "Christian Indians" as well as successful farmers on land in Pennsylvania. The Christians of Pennsylvania eventually ran the Indians off of their land; so the Indians moved to Ohio and created another successful agricultural community.
The Christian Indians, numbering about 400, agreed not to take up the hatchet against the Americans during the War for Independence in exchange for the promise of the Continental Congress to grant them, after the war, official title to their land. In 1781, the Indians were forced off their land in Ohio by the British and removed to the south shore of Lake Erie where they were left to starve. In 1782, the godly Christian men of the Pennsylvania Militia murdered ninety of the Christian Indians, including women and children, when they returned to their fields in Ohio searching for food. The method of execution was to bash the Indian’s heads in with large wooded mallets. The surviving Indians scattered.
When the war ended the Moravians attempted to round up the surviving Indians and held them to reclaim their land in Ohio, official title to which, had been promised them by the Continental Congress if they remained neutral during the war.
The Moravian believed that the Indians were being threatened by some Americans not to return to their land. Therefore, the Moravians asked Congress to convey the land to the Moravians in trust to cut off any hope of the Americans, who were believed to be threatening the Indians, to gain title to the land. Congress complied with the Moravian’s request in 1787.
The efforts of the Moravians to round the Indians up and settle them permanently on the land in Ohio failed due to a variety of reasons detailed in an 1822 report to Congress. The Moravians conveyed the land back to the U. S. in the 1820's.
PS: The name of the Pennsylvania corporation, formed by the Moravians, to hold the land trust, included the phrase, "for the propagation of Christianity among the Indians." The "Liars For Christ" always neglect to inform their victims of that fact.
He may be more 'well read' than some, but he's also very adept at avoiding questions that would tend to derail his argument...