Cry, The Beloved Country

Injustice in Christianity  

      Throughout the book Paton’s has many arising themes. Considering what has already happen in the story the injustice among the people seems to be a leading cause in many of the oncoming issues. The lack of Christian values is one of the main causes in the unfair treatment and injustice among the people throughout the book.     

     Throughout all the hardships that John Kumalo faces his comfort comes from his faith in God. When all the events containing his son start to come into the light John Kumalo's faith gets shaken up, but not completely broken. He felt that his son had lost contact with his God. Paton ends chapter 15 by having Father Vincent teach John Kumalo how to pray again,” Do not pray and think about these things now… Pray for your own rebuilding. Pray for all white people, those who do justice, and those who would do justice if they were not afraid. And do not fear to pray from your son, and for his amendment (142).” The simple facts that his son had killed a white man had worried him. John Kumalo spent a lot of time in prayer, not only praying for himself, but also for his friends and family. The book often explains that in the wrong hands, Christianity can put a bad message into the head of the people. A bad message such as, God isn’t looking out for all of his people, only the ones who truly show they have faith and believe in him,usually the whites.

     John Kumalo often reminds the reader as well as his brother, that the black priests are paid less than the white ones. Christianity is also, however, is sometimes associated with injustice. John Kumalo argues that all the church's should work against all of the unfair treatment going on around them. John Kumalo describes how the unfair treatment mixes in with the church, "My friend, I am Christian. It is not in my heart to hate a white man. It was a white man who brought my father out of darkness.... The white man has broken the tribe. And it is my belief-- and again I ask your pardon-- that it cannot be mended again... They give us to little... They give us nothing(55-56)." The social justice in South Africa is one of the major causes in the loss of faith and injustice happening there. Not only does Christianity provide a form of comfort for many in the story; it also is a form of security. 

     In closing, the prominent theme that Paton is making stand out the most is that the injustice among all the people, including the priest and the common people, seems to be the most significant cause in many of the oncoming issues. Lacking in some Christian values is one of the main causes in the unfair treatment and all of the injustice among the people in the story Cry, The Beloved Country. Things as simple as the whites getting paid more then blacks, although they are both doing the same job are events that could be avoided, if only everyone was treated equally, not by the color of their skin.
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