Colombia's Religion

Religion today tells us a lot about a person. It often speaks volumes for the person at hand. Religion gives us a glimpse about what makes someone unique and special. This was the same for the Colombians. Pre-Colombian exchange, the Colombian natives did not really have a universal religion, it was just a religion similar to every other New World Native American tribal religion, such as worshipping multiple gods and other idols other than worshipping one universal God. 

It wasn’t until the Colombian Exchange that we could start to see a major change in religion in Colombia and the Americas. During the Colombian Exchange, the Spanish were a powerhouse if you will of Christian ideologies and beliefs. They showed great enthuiaism and energy in their missionary activities. According to one article, “The Spanish set up their missions throughout the Americas, where priests and other church leaders attempted to evangelize the Native Americans and other groups.” The article states that “Christainity had first came to the Americas with the Europeans. It was very different from today, as there was no “official” separation between the church and the state, and politics and religion were very much mized together. So when Spanish explorers such as Colombus, Ponce de Leon, or John Cabot claimed land in the name of a king, they were also claiming that land in the name for God. Roman Catholicism was the official religion of Spain, so Spanish explorers and soldiers called conquistadors sought to spread Catholicism throughout their colonies (in addition to accumulating wealth and power). 

In the colonial period, the Catholic church was created and in charge of most of the public institutions, such as teaching facilities such as schools, colleges, universities, libraries, botanical gardens, astronomical observatories, health facilities, hospitals, and jails. The official religion today of Spain is Christian Catholocism, which is estimated around 70% of the nation practices today. It actually was not until 1991 that the Colombians were granted egalitarian treatment from the government to all the religions. Before this, the Colombians faced discrimination for practicing other religions and believing in anything other than the ordinary. 

The importance of the spiritual world to the Colombians is the backbone to life itself here. Think about this, today, religion determines the way we do almost everything in our lives. How we dress, what we eat, what we say, the languages we speak, ect. For instance, a U.S citizen compared to a Syrian citizen. The U.S citizen is more than likely not a Muslim, they do not speak Arabic, or eat the same diet that an average Syrian would, and this is vice-versa. Our religion determines and shapes more about us than we actually think. Just like all religions, the beliefs are debated among people, but this is what makes religion such a unique thing. Something can be read from one person and it can be totally comprehended another way by another person. Religion is an essential key to life, as it provides a foundation and stability to many people. 

Sources:

“Religion in Colombia.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Feb. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Colombia.

Sawe, Benjamin Elisha. “Religious Beliefs In Colombia.” WorldAtlas, WorldAtlas, 9 Nov. 2016, www.worldatlas.com/articles/religious-beliefs-in-colombia.html.

Culture Over Time

          When the early inhabitants of the country we now know of as Colombia were present, things looked a lot different than they do now. For thousands of years, early inhabitants of the land lived by hunting and fishing, plundering for their food on a daily basis. It wasn’t until Alonso de Ojeda, whom was actually the first Spaniard to have arrived in the area in the year 1500 that the natives who had lived there before started to see major changes. 

Upon the arrival of the Europeans in what is today known as South America, there was major change seen by the natives almost immediately. With the arrival of the Europeans came a new way of life for the indigenous peoples. Slaves were brought to the region in large numbers mainly in the city of Cartagena, Colombia. In this city, over 1.1 million Africans entered the docks at Cartagena de las Indias. The African slaves came in very large numbers due to the fact that the slave trade was a massive success for the country of Spain. The Spanish were experts in this field and had the system of capturing and selling African souls down to an art. As we know today, the main goal for Spain was to make the most profit as possible off of the African slaves. The African slave trade was the most profitable business that Spain and many other European powers had working for them at the time. As sick, demeaning, and inhumane as it was, it was a part of history and that cannot be erased from the past and shaping the world as we know it today. 

From a social standpoint, the people of Colombia have came a very long way. Colombia started out as a form of government like most countries, or territories, of the New World, as being ruled over by a “Mother” country, and in Colombia’s case, that mother country was Spain. Spain was the main power for most of the New World countries. With this brought the Spanish way of life and thus spread throughout the land. Today, Colombia is a unitary republic. Their current constitution was adopted in 1991. The current constitution is actually very similar to our of the United States, as one of the major differences being that prior to 2004, there was only a one-term limit for presidents. This was revised due to the large popularity of President Alvaro Uribe. This revision would last barely over a decade though, as the law was reversed back to a one-term limit again in 2015. Today, the Colombian people face the growing threat of national security breaches due to the rise in terrorist organizations. Like many other countries, one of the main goals in current President Marquez’s administration is to unite the country and to improve their economic growth. 

From the earliest inhabitants of the lands, to the country that Colombia is today, the people over generations have seen a great deal of change occur. As horrifying as some of the historical events may have been, they did take place and they did shape the way the country is today. I believe that without certain events, there could have been drastic change in the way that we know not only Colombia, but the world as we know it is today. 

Citations:

“Government of Colombia.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 12 Feb. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Colombia.

“History of Colombia.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 5 Apr. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Colombia.