When people ask about Christianity, colonialism, and the misuse of the Bible, they are not asking a small or theoretical question. They may be carrying family stories, the loss of language or land, the legacy of residential schools, or the painful experience of seeing Jesus used as a reason to dismiss their people and culture. Those questions deserve more than a quick defense of Christianity. They deserve honesty, grief, and a careful look at Jesus.

Christian people and institutions have sometimes participated in colonial systems. Some missionaries worked alongside governments and empires that took land, suppressed Indigenous practices, separated children from families, and treated European culture as superior. Bible verses were quoted to excuse injustice. This was sinful. Calling it sin is not an attack on Christian faith. It is one way Christians tell the truth about what happened.

Christianity, Colonialism, and the Misuse of the Bible

Colonialism is more than people from one country traveling to another. It involves one power taking control over another people, often claiming their land, labor, resources, and right to govern themselves. In many places, colonial powers presented their expansion as civilized, Christian, or necessary.

That message often confused the gospel with empire. Instead of inviting people to follow Jesus freely, some expected them to become culturally European. Instead of serving communities with humility, some treated them as projects to manage or obstacles to overcome. The name of Christ was attached to violence and coercion that directly contradicted His teaching.

It is also important to be precise. Not every Christian supported colonialism, and not every missionary had the same motives or impact. Some believers defended oppressed people, learned local languages, challenged slave traders, and resisted government abuses. Many Indigenous, African, Asian, and Latin American Christians received the gospel, followed Jesus with conviction, and shaped the worldwide church in ways that cannot be reduced to Western influence.

Still, the fact that some Christians did good does not erase the harm done by others. Honest faith does not need to rewrite history to protect itself.

How the Bible Was Turned Into a Tool of Control

The Bible has been misused when people bring their desire for power to the text and then make the text say what they already wanted. A verse can be quoted accurately while being used dishonestly.

For example, some people appealed to the command in Genesis to “fill the earth and subdue it” as though it gave certain nations permission to seize other peoples’ land. But Genesis teaches that all humanity belongs to God and bears His image. It does not grant one ethnic group the right to dominate another. Biblical stewardship means accountable care under God, not exploitation.

Others used the so-called “curse of Ham” to defend racial slavery. This was a serious distortion. Genesis does not place a curse on Ham or create a racial hierarchy. The passage was twisted to support a system that had already decided some human beings could be bought, sold, and abused.

Passages that tell Christians to respect governing authorities were also used to demand silence from oppressed people. Yet the same Bible records Hebrew midwives refusing Pharaoh’s deadly order, prophets confronting kings, and the apostles saying, “We must obey God rather than men.” Respect for authority is never a command to cooperate with evil.

Even missionary language was sometimes misapplied. Jesus told His followers to make disciples of all nations. He did not tell them to conquer nations, erase their languages, or force confessions of faith. Christian faith cannot be coerced. A forced conversion may produce outward compliance, but it cannot produce the trust, love, and repentance that Jesus calls for.

Jesus Was Not a Mascot for Empire

Jesus was a Jewish man from first-century Judea, a land living under Roman occupation. He did not arrive as a military conqueror. He welcomed outsiders, touched people considered unclean, spoke with the socially excluded, and challenged religious leaders who used their status to burden others.

His kingdom is real, but it does not operate by domination. When His disciples were tempted by power, Jesus told them that rulers of the nations “lord it over” people, but “it shall not be so among you.” Greatness in His kingdom looks like service.

That does not mean Jesus is merely a symbol of social change. Christians believe He is the risen Lord who calls every person, every culture, and every nation to turn from sin and trust Him. But His lordship confronts the pride of every culture, including the culture of the people doing the evangelizing. No nation gets to claim Jesus as its private property.

The book of Revelation gives a beautiful picture of people from every tribe, language, people, and nation worshiping God. Unity around Jesus is not sameness. The gospel does not require a person from Kingston, Peterborough, or anywhere else to abandon their heritage in order to follow Christ. Cultural practices should be tested with wisdom, as every culture must be, but following Jesus is not the same as becoming someone else.

What Honest Christian Repentance Looks Like

Repentance is more than saying, “That was unfortunate,” or, “That happened a long time ago.” Biblical repentance means turning around. It includes telling the truth, grieving what was wrong, and seeking to make things right where possible.

For Christians, that can mean learning local history instead of avoiding it because it feels uncomfortable. In communities across Eastern Ontario, this may include listening carefully when Indigenous neighbors speak about the impact of colonial policies and church-run institutions. Listening is not the same as agreeing with every conclusion someone reaches, but it is a necessary expression of love and respect.

It can also mean refusing to use faith as a weapon in present-day conversations. Christians should not pressure people, talk over their experiences, or assume that skepticism comes from ignorance. A person may have very good reasons to be cautious when a church invites them to trust its message.

Repentance also has practical dimensions. Depending on the situation, it may involve supporting truth-telling, pursuing fair relationships, honoring commitments, sharing resources, and speaking up when people are treated as less valuable because of race, background, or social position. There is no single action that repairs every historic wrong. But doing nothing is not faithfulness either.

Can the Bible Still Be Trusted After Its Misuse?

This is often the deepest question. If people used the Bible to justify oppression, why trust it at all?

A good thing can be misused. Courts can misuse laws. People can misuse science, history, or religious language. The misuse of something does not automatically prove that the thing itself is false. It does show why we must read it carefully and be willing to question those who claim to speak for it.

The Bible itself repeatedly exposes human abuse of power. It tells the story of God hearing enslaved Israelites cry out in Egypt. It condemns leaders who exploit the vulnerable. It commands love for the neighbor and care for the foreigner. Jesus teaches that whatever is done to “the least of these” matters deeply to Him.

Most importantly, the Bible does not ask us to trust every Christian institution without question. It points us to Jesus. Christians and churches should be measured by His character and teaching, not the other way around. When Christians defend cruelty, racism, theft, or forced control, they are not revealing Jesus clearly. They are contradicting Him.

A Question Worth Bringing Into the Open

You do not need to pretend the history is simple before considering Christianity. It is not. There are real wounds, complicated stories, courageous believers, and shameful failures. There is also Jesus, who is not threatened by honest questions and does not ask anyone to deny what they have seen.

If Christianity has been presented to you as a European possession or a tool for controlling people, it makes sense to look closer. Read the words of Jesus for yourself. Ask who benefited from a particular interpretation. Ask whether a teaching produces love, truth, humility, justice, and freedom, or fear and domination.

Your questions are welcome. The harm done in Jesus’ name should lead Christians to greater humility, and it should never keep you from meeting Jesus Himself.