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Contact: Mark Calamia, 507-825-5464 ext. 216
Pipestone National Monument Guest Speaker Series Pipestone, MN: Glen Livermont, Superintendent, at Pipestone National Monument, announces the fifth presentation in this year's Guest Speaker Series. Guest speakers, Dr. James Calvin Schaap will present lectures on "The Role of Missionaries in the Dakota War of 1862" and "Reflections on Mission Enterprises Among the Navajoand Zuni Indians of the American Southwest" at the Pipestone Performing Arts Center, Pipestone, Minnesota, on Saturday, May 11th, from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm. Dr. Schaap notes that Christian missionarieswere often the first white people Native Americans met in the European settlement of the Upper Midwest and throughout the continent. Generally, missionaries of the gospel—both Roman Catholic and Protestant—followed the fur trappers, but preceded significant home steading in the early decades of the 19th century. Sioux Country, they were often among the earliest white settlers inthe woods and on the prairies. He points out that the missionaries were deeply committed to the cause of Jesus Christ, preaching the gospel and teaching Native people to pray and argues that the importance of Christian missionaries among Native peoples is difficult, complex, and even risky tointerpret. The role of Christian missionaries in the 1862 Dakota War is just ascomplex and fascinating. Through that time in this region's history, no white people so fully supported the Dakota, from beginning to end, as their own Christian missionaries. Yet, they also played decisive roles in sentencing the 303 Dakota Indians to death by hanging. Dr. James Calvin Schaap is a retired professor of English at Dordt College, Sioux Center, Iowa and has published several books, including novels, historical short fiction, meditations, essays andstories, biography. For additional information contact Pipestone National Monument at 507-825-5464 ext. 214, or view the Monument's web site at www.nps.gov/pipe. About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 398 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov |
Last updated: April 10, 2015