The Value of Death
An Exploration of Human Sacrifice
The question of human sacrifice in particular is useful and quite prevenient. In this essay I would like to explore the transformation of human sacrifice in the America’s from pre-conquest to the colonization of the Spanish. Human sacrifice is customarily viewed through a Eurocentric lens in which it is seen as heathenistic and barbaric. I would like to challenge this view and point out how it is in a way hypocritical to view the Mexica and Inca cultures this way, specifically in the case of the Spanish Conquistadors’ Catholic religion. I would also like to explore the rituals of sacrifice, how they were done, the meaning behind, and how these were changed once the Spanish colonized.
Through …show more content…
In the old testament there are several passages about sacrifices and even holidays dedicated to the use of blood to please God, Passover. Jesus himself is the greatest human sacrifice in this religion. In this religion Jesus was born to Mary the Virgin, in order to live a perfect life, died and save all the people from sin by believing in the value of his life and death. Prior to Jesus’ life and death sacrifice one of the best-known examples in the Christian religion is the story of Isaac and Abraham. One of the most dramatic episodes in Judeo-Christian Scripture begins with God 's command that Abraham sacrifice Isaac, his son. Abraham sorrowfully prepares to obey, but God intervenes and provides a ram as a sacrificial substitute. The meaning of this episode has been the subject of intense discussion through the centuries, although it is most often interpreted as a celebration of faith on Abraham 's part and mercy on the part of God. Another human sacrifice reported in the Bible has remained more difficult to interpret in a favorable light and, therefore, has received less attention. Jepthah pledged he would sacrifice the first living creature that he saw when returning home if God would grant him victory in an upcoming battle. The victorious Jepthah was greeted by his daughter upon returning home. True to his pledge, Jepthah made a burnt offering of his daughter (who is not given a name in the …show more content…
Alejandro Cañeque explains the auto de fe was the ceremony during which the Inquisition assess and punish prisoners for actions against the Catholic faith, in his essay “Theater of Power: Writing and Representing the Auto de Fe in Colonial Mexico”. This was a ritual performance that symbolized the Last Judgment when all sinners stood before God to be judge and deemed worry or not. This involved physically punishment, public mocking, and a surprise reveal of the individual’s identity during the ceremony. Cañeque argues that the ceremony of the auto de fe was brought to the New World and gained added meaning as a ritual of royal legitimation. This was carefully devised by Henry Charles Lea to inspire awe for the mysterious authority of the
An Exploration of Human Sacrifice
The question of human sacrifice in particular is useful and quite prevenient. In this essay I would like to explore the transformation of human sacrifice in the America’s from pre-conquest to the colonization of the Spanish. Human sacrifice is customarily viewed through a Eurocentric lens in which it is seen as heathenistic and barbaric. I would like to challenge this view and point out how it is in a way hypocritical to view the Mexica and Inca cultures this way, specifically in the case of the Spanish Conquistadors’ Catholic religion. I would also like to explore the rituals of sacrifice, how they were done, the meaning behind, and how these were changed once the Spanish colonized.
Through …show more content…
In the old testament there are several passages about sacrifices and even holidays dedicated to the use of blood to please God, Passover. Jesus himself is the greatest human sacrifice in this religion. In this religion Jesus was born to Mary the Virgin, in order to live a perfect life, died and save all the people from sin by believing in the value of his life and death. Prior to Jesus’ life and death sacrifice one of the best-known examples in the Christian religion is the story of Isaac and Abraham. One of the most dramatic episodes in Judeo-Christian Scripture begins with God 's command that Abraham sacrifice Isaac, his son. Abraham sorrowfully prepares to obey, but God intervenes and provides a ram as a sacrificial substitute. The meaning of this episode has been the subject of intense discussion through the centuries, although it is most often interpreted as a celebration of faith on Abraham 's part and mercy on the part of God. Another human sacrifice reported in the Bible has remained more difficult to interpret in a favorable light and, therefore, has received less attention. Jepthah pledged he would sacrifice the first living creature that he saw when returning home if God would grant him victory in an upcoming battle. The victorious Jepthah was greeted by his daughter upon returning home. True to his pledge, Jepthah made a burnt offering of his daughter (who is not given a name in the …show more content…
Alejandro Cañeque explains the auto de fe was the ceremony during which the Inquisition assess and punish prisoners for actions against the Catholic faith, in his essay “Theater of Power: Writing and Representing the Auto de Fe in Colonial Mexico”. This was a ritual performance that symbolized the Last Judgment when all sinners stood before God to be judge and deemed worry or not. This involved physically punishment, public mocking, and a surprise reveal of the individual’s identity during the ceremony. Cañeque argues that the ceremony of the auto de fe was brought to the New World and gained added meaning as a ritual of royal legitimation. This was carefully devised by Henry Charles Lea to inspire awe for the mysterious authority of the