¡\ Vs '\vr\ \*S> y v
A nimism is belief in spirit be ings. These beings can be the spirits o f ancestors as well as snirits which have no human ori gin. Many o f the primitive people
rounded with a hundred million o f these superstitious people. The' animists live in great fear of the evil spirits. They believe the spirits reside in every object . . . the trees, the streams, the stones, the wood o f their houses and the dirt floors unon which they sleep. They sac rifice much o f t h e i r m e a g e r wealth to placate and appease the spirits. Although some believe in a “ great spirit” who is the creator and sustainer o f t h e universe, they do not worship him because he is only good and has no power to harm them. In many places the animists foster grotesque and hideous practices. In some areas wives are buried with their dead chieftains and twin babies are murdered. Among some o f the tribes, cannibalism, human sacrifices, and head-hunt ing are condoned. Few men have witnessed a cannibal feast, but Christian and M i s s i o n a r y Alliance pioneer missionary Tom Bozeman, watched this depraved act and gives us an eye-witness account. My reason fo r relating it is simply to help strip away any illusions you might have as to the spiritual state o f the animist. Mr. Boseman was working in New Guinea among a fierce, nak ed, fuzzy-haired p e o p l e called Dani. This tribe considered farm ing and warfare their main occu pations. To them immorality was a virtue. They were the kind o f people who rejoiced in unmention able crimes. A lie was a trait o f strong character and the eating o f human brains and flesh desirable. At the close o f a battle between the Dani warriors and some other tribesmen, one o f the warriors shouted over his shoulder to the missionary, “ I forg o t to tell you that we captured the body o f our foe. Tomorrow will be a victory
o f A frica , A s i a , S o u t h America Oceania are ani- mists. It is estimated that in our world we are sur-
FROMCANNIBALS
-
TO CHRISTIANS!
by Dr. Dick Hillis, General Director Overseas Crusades, Inc.
THE KING'S BUSINESS
14
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online