| Title | : | Peace Child: An Unforgettable Story of Primitive Jungle Teaching in the 20th Century |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0830737847 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780830737840 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 256 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 1974 |
Peace Child: An Unforgettable Story of Primitive Jungle Teaching in the 20th Century Reviews
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"At first I sat there confused. Then the realization broke through. They were acclaiming Judas as the hero of the story! Yes, Judas, the one whom I had portrayed as the satanically motivated enemy of truth and goodness....I saw now that the Sari were not only cruel, but honored cruelty. Their highest pleasure depended upon the misery and despair of others.......treachery was idealized as a virtue, a goal of life....Judas was a super-Sawi! And Christ the object of Judas' treachery meant nothing to the men in the manhouse."
This was one of the best missionary biographies that I have read. It was also the most gruesome.
The author paints a vivid picture of missionary work among the cannibalistic, headhunting Sawi tribe in Netherlands New Guinea (now West Papua, Indonesia.)
An urgent request for workers was made;
"You may be called upon to make the first advance into the midst of entire tribes that have never known any type of government control, where people are a law unto themselves and where savagery is a way of life....you will encounter customs and beliefs that will baffle you but which must be understood if you are to succeed. You will try to treat loathsome tropical diseases and run the risk of being blamed for the death of the patient if you fail. You must prepare to endure loneliness, weariness and frustration with fortitude. Most of all, you must be prepared, in the strength of the Lord, to do battle with the prince of darkness, who, having held these many tribes captive these many thousands of years, is not about to give them up without a fight!"
The author answered the call taking his family to live and work in primitive conditions with this basic premise in mind:
"The world just isn't big enough anymore for anyone to be left alone. It is a foregone conclusion that even if missionaries do not go in to give, lumbermen, crocodile hunters, prospectors or farmers will go in to take ....as the one who got there first to live among the Sawi, it was my aim to combine faithfulness to God and the Scriptures with respect for the Sawi and their culture. The crucial question was; would the Sawi culture and the Scriptures prove so opposite in their basic premises as to render this two way loyalty impossible? I intended to find out.
He faced various unexpected challenges:
"I knew if I upbraided Mavu for nearly killing two men, he would just shrug his shoulders as if to say, "So what?" So instead I said cryptically "You have made my wife's hands bloody." The remark took him by surprise. He glanced quickly at Carol's hands and a sudden realization of the inappropriateness of the scene he had helped to create seemed to startle him. Mavu winced, fearing he had unwittingly committed some dark impropriety of cosmic consequence.
"Do dead men say konahari?" I asked quietly. After an embarrassed silence, someone said "No, dead men never say konahari." "And if Warahai's soul had been cut up and eaten by a demon, would he be looking around at us as you now observe?" "We listened to a lie." said Mahaen solemnly. "We nearly buried a living man" said Boro, staring at the wall."
This is an unique book. The author relays events from the perspective of the Sawi (and also some of their animals at times!) The missionaries desperately needed to find an analogy from the Sawi culture that they could use to share the Gospel. But, how to overcome these seemingly impossible cultural dilemmas handed down from generation to generation....could the "Peace Child" be the answer?
I would recommend this book to adult readers. There is no bad language or sexual content but the violence/cannibalism is shocking and may disturb some readers. -
Most books about missionaries that I've read start with the missionary: his call, his preparation, his arrival among people with an unfamiliar culture and language, his painstaking efforts.
In "Peace Child," as in "Lords of the Earth," Don Richardson starts with the people the missionary is trying to reach, in this case the Sawi people of what then was Netherlands New Guinea (now Papua Indonesia; Irian Jaya in the interim).
The missionary in this case is Richardson himself, along with his wife, Carol. But we don't meet the Richardsons until the second part of the book. By the time, he has made us somewhat familiar with the stone-age Sawi people. So we don't just sense the apprehension the Richardsons must feel as they come among a people known to be headhunters and cannibals. (They also are a people who celebrate treachery, but the Richardsons don't realize this at first.) We also sense the terror the Sawi must feel the first time they meet 20th century technology with its high speeds and throbbing noises in the person of these strange, seemingly immortal, pale gods.
Richardson struggled mightily to translate the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the Sawi people in a way that would make sense to their culture. He only succeeded after he encountered the strange and troubling peacemaking ceremony that involved surrendering a "Peace Child" to a rival clan. The Gospel story started to click when Richardson was able to explain that God had surrendered his own Son, the perfect Peace Child, to bring peace to all people.
"Lords of the Earth" was an even better book than "Peace Child," I thought, but both were impressive. And they were especially meaningful to me because of missionaries I know who came to another stone-age tribe in Papua Indonesia in 2000. Richardson's books give me at least a little insight into what my friends the Crocketts must have been up against when they first arrived among the Moi tribe.
It's amazing that almost 40 years after the Richardsons came to the Sawi, there still were unreached people groups in Papua. And I'm told there remain many more. -
This was a lot different than I was anticipating. The first 50 pages are shown through the tribes POV, so it is a little dark and evil at the beginning, revealing those without Christ do not have hope. Once Don Richardson and his wife felt called to the tribe the story picked up a bit. Everything with the Peace Child was so amazing. Once Don Richardson was able to reveal Christ to them through their traditional idea of the Peace Child, salvation began among the people.
Some parts of the book are a little disconcerting, especially with the tribes traditional beliefs. The description of cannibalism isn't very nice to read. I would not recommend for under 16/17 of age because of that.
I'm looking forward to reading Don Richardson's other book. -
Loved it. This book was hard to stomach, and I can stomach a lot. Of course you hear about cannibalism in the history books, but I’ve never read any history or biography that captured the rank horror of paganism like this one. Some friends of mine were missionaries to New Guinea in the 1990s, and it was a dark and witchcrafty place even then—and that was at least 40 years after the gospel had arrived! But in contrast to this horrible darkness, God’s amazing grace shines even brighter.
The title “Peace Child” comes from the most amazing part of this book. For background, the Sawi people of New Guinea were headhunters and cannibals. War and bitter bloodshed were a way of life. Revenge was manly and essential. But treachery—treachery was the highest good of all. Warriors regaled each other of how they “fattened up their friends for the slaughter,” then betrayed, murdered, and ate them. When they heard the story of Jesus, they presumed Judas was the hero! He betrayed Jesus, after all, after three whole years of pretending to be His friend! What a feat. The Sawi people loved Judas, because they were a people of Judases.
Yet there was one person even the Sawi would not betray, and that was the Peace Child. The Peace Child was the son of your enemy, given to you, and your own son, given to your enemy, as permanent hostages. As long as the Peace Child lived, there must be peace between your tribes. War and betrayal were out of the question. You could not betray the Peace Child.
This is the metaphor that missionary Don Richardson latched onto in order to explain the Gospel. Jesus was God’s Peace Child! And Judas betrayed Him! Unforgivable. Then the Peace Child was raised from the dead and now He will never die, so we dare not break the peace He brought between God and man or between us and our neighbor. This Peace Child lives forever. We cannot betray Him.
That story cut the Sawi people to the heart. They converted in droves. And so the darkest book I’ve ever read turned out to be one of the brightest. Sometimes you will never know what light the Gospel is until it shines in a world so black as this. -
This is an absolutely absorbing story of a forgotten and dying people thrown a lifeline just before they were swept into the maelstrom of modernity.
I think it is so gripping just because of the drastic contrast Richardson paints between the indigenous culture and the Gospel of Christ. First, he paints their daily lives vividly, so that we can glimpse their fear, anger, hate, and despair. Then he also invites us to join him on his journey to break through their world view so they can grasp and eventually accept the hope, peace, forgiveness, and joy in salvation.
Because he so graphically describes their culture, it is also a beautiful answer to those who charge Christians with imposing their culture on an equally valid and acceptable indigenous culture. He shows us the eternal and temporal benefits that always follow true Christian culture.
Parts of this book are very graphic. That does show the glorious light of the Gospel even more strongly, but I would recommend it for a more mature audience. -
Even if treachery is a culture's highest ideal, the Creator has planted within that culture a "key" to "unlock" such seemingly "closed" minds to at least consider the fact that the Creator actually may have visited this planet. We just have to find that "key" within each culture, so that people will at least listen and consider the "story" of Jesus. This is an amazing story. I first heard it first-hand, humbly told by Don Richardson to me and just 5 others, around 1975. I had no time in my schedule for him, who was a mere "visiting missionary" during "Missions Week" at Dallas Theological Seminary, and had asked him if he would just tell me a good story that I could use for my collection of required sermon illustrations. For about 30 minutes he kept us "spellbound", telling us the story of this book. The next day we discovered that he was the famous author of this book. I was so embarrassed!!!
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I found Richardson's account of his ministry to the Sawi to be very dramatic, reading like a novel for most of the book. I think he tends to overdo the storytelling a bit, but the main point does come through very clearly: A missionary can never present the Gospel effectively if he doesn't take the time to understand the culture of the people. Richardson was only able to connect the message with the people after he understood the "peace child" concept built into their culture. Richardson touts the value of finding a "redemptive analogy" like the peace child to aid the preaching of the Gospel in a foreign culture, but books like this should probably always be labeled the same way diet plans are labeled: "Results may vary."
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I can't think of a missions story I like better. I read it maybe a quarter century ago, and was grateful to revisit it now. Our Peace Child, the Word of God, the Story and the Storyteller, never changes, yet He is always new and surprising with every new audience, whether an individual or a culture. And always exceedingly lovely and glorious. And in this instance, most affecting.
Reader seemed well-suited to the book. -
One of the major genres in my home growing up was missionary and martyr stories. This was one I read multiple times as a child, I loved the completely different culture. I'm pretty sure it is what stayed in the back of my mind in my undergrad years that led me to doing a research paper on the music if the Kaluli people of Papua New Guinea,
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What an amazing story! I started this book years ago but couldn't get past the first section - it was SO violent, shocking and sad. Picked it up again and pushed through and was greatly rewarded. I stand in awe of our amazing God. He's a loving genius who is unbelievably huge and creative. I'm so thankful that I will share Heaven with the Sawi someday!
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If I were to play a drinking game with Peace Child and take but a single sip of wine every time I came across an exclamation point, I would be passed out by page 100. But if one can get past the excessive use of exclamation points – and, with some effort, I did – Peace Child tells a fascinating story.
It is the true tale of missionaries who go to live among the remote Sawi tribes of Netherlands New Guinea, learn their language from scratch, and seek to communicate the love, forgiveness, and reconciliation of Christ. But how does one communicate the gospel story to a headhunting, cannibalistic, vengeance-seeking, violent culture that seems, on the surface, to have no redemptive metaphors? How do you get across the meaning of the gospel to a people who so value treachery that when they first hear the gospel story, they think Judas the hero of the tale? When a people consider a man’s most admirable feat to be his ability to befriend and then betray his enemy, to successfully “fatten with friendship for the slaughter,” how do you tell the story of a God who sent his own Son to His enemies like a lamb to the slaughter?
Our missionary author does at last discover an apt Sawi cultural metaphor after he struggles to break the inter-tribal cycle of revenge, murder, and cannibalism, eventually threatening to leave the warring Sawi people if they do not establish peace amongst themselves. Desperate to keep the “tuan” (mainly for his medicine and tools), the Sawi do seek to make peace through a unique, ancient Sawi ritual that also serves as the very metaphor the missionary had previously sought for in vain: the exchange of a peace child. Eventually, the missionary discovers still more metaphors in Sawi culture that he can use to communicate the gospel, and I was again reminded that the transformative power of Christianity is housed in the vehicle not of law, but of story. Peace Child shows how God communicates most profoundly and universally with His diverse creation through story, using their storytellers to implant in their minds and hearts metaphors that are not always fully apprehended, but in which rest a dormant seed of the Truth that may one day be nurtured into bloom. Christianity itself is a story (“the greatest story ever told,” as the saying goes), one we liturgical Christians tell and live through every year, from beginning to end, in our rituals, pageants, and holy days. And again I am reminded of why I was drawn by liturgy and found myself moving from the starker rituals of evangelical Protestantism to the rich, inspiring story-telling of the liturgical Christian world.
This metaphor of the peace child, though it comes from a culture very different from my own, nonetheless helped me to again see the gospel afresh. The metaphor shifts the focus of the gospel story for me from the blood sacrifice/sin component of the story to the peace/ reconciliation component, the reconciliation that has occurred not just between God and man through the peace child Christ, but the peace and reconciliation that ought to occur between all men who lay claim to this peace child, who have taken the peace child not merely into their villages, but into their hearts, and even into their bodies through the Eucharist ritual. It was an appropriate book to read this Advent season, a book that helped me better appreciate why Christ’s birth should indeed be heralded with the words, “Peace on earth, and good will to men.” -
This was a very interesting story about a missionary bringing the gospel to the Sawi people of New Guinea. This was a very in-depth look into the lives of these cannibalistic people before they received the gospel and what happened after they received the good news of Jesus Christ.
What I Liked: This book was an honest look into the lives of the Sawi people. Getting to know their culture through the reading of this book was interesting. I also enjoyed getting to hear this book from
Don Richardson's point of view as he shares how he tried to help the people through the strength of God to overcome their superstitious beliefs.
I liked how real this author was as he shared the joys AND disappointments--the times where he was seriously questioning why God had sent him to the Sawi people if he was going to fail in being able to make them understand the gospel. It was very realistic and it encouraged me to see
Don Richardson overcame his doubts by the power of God. It was neat when God finally made him aware of the key to helping the Sawi understand the gospel. The analogies of what the peace child meant to the Sawi people and the Ultimate Peace Child--Jesus Christ, made the gospel fresh to my mind. It seems timely for me to be reading this book on the Resurrection weekend.
It was so joyful to me to see these precious people come to know Christ as their Savior and live according to God's Word. I'm so thankful that
Don Richardson and his wife, Carol, followed God's calling as missionaries.
What I Didn't Like: While there wasn't anything that I didn't like, certain parts, (especially at the beginning), were a little confusing to me. Also, this author went into pretty good detail into the paganism and cannibalism of this people before they received salvation. I see the point in making people aware of where they had come from, but at times, I felt that it was a bit too detailed. I would not recommend this story to young teens or children.
I give this book 4 out of 5 stars for an excellent true story of how God transformed the lives of the Sawi people. -
Great story that demonstrates Gods creativity in creating diverse cultures; his self-disclosure and unique pursuit of this remote tribe in Papua New Guinea. The missionary in this book lived with the tribe, learned their worldview and discovered the key to explaining the gospel in a culturally relevant way.
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God is amazing, and what the Richardson did was amazing. They risked their lives, and of course it's amazing and inspiring to see what God does for them and the Sawi.
I don't particularly like the way the book's written, but the actual incidents and events are amazing. -
Wow.
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I’m so thankful for the willing souls that went over for this mission. I thought about if I’d be brave enough to go, to be with headhunters and cannibals, and in my own strength for sure not. I know that’s the only way they did it too. At the same time, it’s still seemed very harrowing.
I’m really didn’t enjoy hearing the details of the deception or the taking and eating off a man but even then when they came to God, it showed a scenario that truly only the Holy Spirit could work in. And I LOVED the way that was being prepared in their legends and lore of the gospel coming to them! Books like these make me aware of the need to pray for the mission field abroad and domestically and I am so thankful for the lives that are willing to go. -
Peace Child is an amazing story of God’s redemption in the darkest of places. Wow!
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Peace Child is a book I’ve been familiar with for many years now. And although my first impression was less than great, I’ve come to appreciate the deeper meanings in the story.
Don Richardson and his wife Carol faced some truly difficult situations as they tried to find a way to share the truth of God’s word with the Sawi people. Being headhunters and cannibals, the Sawi weren’t necessarily people you messed with too much—but Don and Carol had a love for them that transcended fear and gave them hope that things could change eventually. I appreciated their focus on keeping their eyes on the Lord, though, and seeking Him about what they should focus on and how to best share the truth.
I’ve struggled with Peace Child somewhat in the past because of the violence in it. I don’t do violence very well, and this book—about headhunting cannibals? Not exactly down my alley! BUT! As I read through it this time, and really paid attention, I realized my first impressions were wrong. This isn’t about their lifestyle. Yes, their whole society had this idealization of treachery, which basically translated to lots of people being killed. Yes, it happened a lot. But the bigger picture is incredible. Through the grace, mercy, and love of the Lord, these people quit being headhunters and cannibals.
It only took one man who was willing to risk going in there to bring them hope.
The journey to get there wasn’t easy—you see graphic examples of Don and Carol wrestling with things trying to figure out how to help the people understand.
But they “got it” in the end.
And, really, that’s all that matters. Their lives were changed for the better, and that is incredible to me!
The thing I love about stories like this is how it’s applicable in some ways no matter where you are. For me, the biggest questions it raised were, “am I willing to pour myself out like they did—even if I don’t see results?” and, “if I’m willing, what can the Lord do through me?” and, “do I truly seek the Lord when I’m presented with difficulties?”
These are questions I’m sure I’ll still be pondering years down the track. But I’m thankful I got to read Peace Child, because I may not have wondered about them otherwise.
In all, this is a wonderful story, even though there are some parts that are—okay, just downright awful. Just a warning for those of you who don’t like violence! :) -
Some people are more like the angels than they are like the rest of us human beings! Such a man is Don Richardson and his wife, Carol.
In 1962 they accepted the call to be missionaries to a people who were living in what we would call the "stone age." Headhunters and cannibals, their short life spans were filled with fear, sickness, tribal warfare, and violent death.
Don and Carol lived among the Sawi tribe of what was then called "Netherlands New Guinea." It wasn't far from the area where Michael Rockefeller was killed by members of a different tribe, but whose lives were lived in the same manner.
Before they could minister to these barbaric people, they first had to learn their language and customs. What a challenge that proved to be! The Sawi language turned out to be highly sophisticated and proved most difficult to learn and then commit to writing. As difficult as the language was, their custom of honoring and exalting "treachery" was the most difficult hurtle to overcome. Bored with common, everyday murder, the Sawi and neighboring tribes like to "fatten with friendship for the slaughter" those whom they would kill and eat once the victim's trust was gained.
The Sawi, however, had a custom to signify complete trust that they would not dishonor - the "Peace Child." Each tribe would surrender a baby of its own and give it to the other tribe. As long as both children remained alive, the tribes would be at peace. A comparison to Jesus as God' "Peace Child" was a much needed breakthrough to reach the souls of these needy people.
This book is a narrative of extreme courage and bravery - and the expression of God's love for even a group of people who had never heard of Him and whose lives were the complete antithesis all that Christianity holds dear. -
This was a wonderful missionary story, telling of the transformation of barbaric cultures into an unlikely culture with a Christian worldview. Richardson writes well, including action and even cliff-hangers at the ends of several chapters. Here is a
post on missionary work and the transformation of culture, and here's
a related one on redemptive analogies, appropriation, and supplanting. Here's
an update on the Sawi people. -
The argument goes like this(though it is told in a narrative story) in each culture God places keys, redemptive analogies, to aid in the communication of the Gospel. Analogies which are made evident are then appropriated by the missionary. For example Paul in Athens appropriated the unknown god to proclaim the true God.
In the Sawi people the Peace Child was a redemptive analogie Don and his wife used to communicate Christ. Hearts which admired Juda's betrayal more then Jesus' sacrifice were transformed.
A balance between redemptive analogies and chronological teaching is a wise middle. -
Excellent read. The cultural aspects challenged me intellectually and expanded my worldview. I was also deeply moved by Richardson's example of incarnational missions. Lastly, the book was spiritually encouraging: I felt that God was truly glorified by this testimony to His sovereign grace among the Sawi people. My only critique would be that the story felt somewhat sensationalized at times, and lacked expression of realistic time passage and character development overall. However, I would highly recommend this read as a cultural, intellectual, and spiritual challenge.
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I read this book last year. I am fascinated in the lives of missionaries and in other cultures, but I'm usually put off by the often weak writing that is put out by Christian publishers. I remember reading this book though and finding it quite poetic in places and well written. The choices and the faith that brought this man and his family to live in such a remote area were inspiring to read about. I would like to read this one again.
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This is my second time through, and it’s even better than the first time years ago. I could quibble with Richardson’s theology, or with his writing style, but the gospel he proclaims is truth and power, and only in my arrogance could I from my seat of Western comfort criticize his theology that took him to live among cannibals.
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this is my favorite missionary book. i love the idea that every culture has some story of redemption thus showing the human need not only for relationship with something greater but also for some kind of redemption.
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Definitely interesting. I was amused at someone else pointing out how many exclamation points there are. I hadn't really noticed. Yes. There are lots of them. The story itself is amazing Worth the time to read it.
