AOM Ministries
Ps 2:8 Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.
1928 E Oklahoma St, Tulsa, Ok, 74110
Email: [email protected]
Face book: https://www.facebook.com/chriskaren.walsh
Tel: 918 851 4070
Peach Trees for Peace
Artist’s depiction of the planting of the Iroquois Peace Tree.
The Cross of Jesus is the one true foundation of American Freedom!
Any American Christian that would like to experience the heart of God, in their own particular ‘trail of tears’ need not look over sea’s to the impoverished and oppressed countries of the earth; but only need to study the history of the First Nations peoples of the United States of America.
It is estimated that 80-100 million Indians lived on this continent in 1492, when Columbus ‘discovered’ this land.
http://www.datesandevents.org/events-timelines/27-native-american-history-timeline.htm
When the US census was taken in 1900, after the last free Indian had been confined to a reservation, it is estimated that there were 500,000 Indians left
What happened to the Indians?
Primarily, they died of diseases brought here by European’s, and then wars and genocide occurred.
“Our nation was born in genocide when it embraced the doctrine that the original American, the Indian, was an inferior race. Even before there were large numbers of Negroes on our shore, the scar of racial hatred had already disfigured colonial society. From the sixteenth century forward, blood flowed in battles over racial supremacy. We are perhaps the only nation which tried as a matter of national policy to wipe out its indigenous population. Moreover, we elevated that tragic experience into a noble crusade. Indeed, even today we have not permitted ourselves to reject or feel remorse for this shameful episode. Our literature, our films, our drama, our folklore all exalts it. Our children are still taught to respect the violence which reduced a red-skinned people of an earlier culture into a few fragmented groups herded into impoverished reservations.”
― Martin Luther King Jr.
Whether from disease, or the devilish doctrine taught in many main-line Christian denominations called ‘manifest destiny ’, the great Indian tribes that walked this land before the white man arrived, were ultimately the prey of satan himself, operating through sickness and disease , and wicked, treacherous, and murderous settlers who killed indiscriminately anyone that contested their lusts for lands and gold.
Yet, true Christians also came, and the gospel came to America. Christian missionaries were known to walk the ‘trail of tears’ with the Cherokee and Choctaw people, and there were many great heroes of the faith during this time.
I am convinced of this one thing about America. We are committed to freedom, liberty, and justice for all. To some degree, the plight of the black man in America has been heard, and victories won, in the Civil war against slavery, and the Civil rights movement against racism.
Yet, the plight and case of the red man, has truly never been heard in the land!
It has been said, that those who refuse to learn from history, are doomed to repeat it.
Here’s a bit of History, you probably did not hear in school.
The Iroquois Confederacy:
First though there was the government of America, before Columbus arrived, or the United States, were even conceived.
Before the white man came, in the year 1050, the Iroquois confederacy was formed, it’s ‘Great Law of Peace’ chronicled on Wampum belts, using shells to depict each of the oral traditions, passed down through the generations.
In the Iroquois tradition, the peace tree symbolized an end to war amongst the tribes who would willingly submit to ‘The Great Law of Peace’ given by the great peacemaker. If you recall, the peacemaker, went on a vision quest, to meet with God, the Creator. Reportedly, He met with God, and had a holy visitation with the Great Spirit. Like Moses coming down from the mountain with the 10 commandments, he came back to his people with ‘The Great Law of Peace’. When translated from the original Wampum belts into English, and presented to our founding fathers, it took 100 Iroquois elders, a full week to recite, this 180 page document is considered the founding document from which our US Constitution is derived.
The five tribes of the Iroquois, planted a peace tree, on top of a mound of weapons of war, a white pine whose braches had clumps of five needles each symbolizing the five great tribes of the confederacy, that for all practical purposes, ruled North America from 1050-1700.
The Iroquois leaders met with our founding fathers, and recited this ‘great law of peace’ to them, and in 1988, it was recognized to be one of the founding documents used in drawing up our US constitution.
The peace tree, the symbol of peace, stated simply: ‘As long as our weapons of war remain in the earth, and this tree shall remain, there shall be peace in the land, to all who desire peace.’
From the initial proclamation of the great peace we read: ‘Roots have spread out from the Tree of the Great Peace, one to the north, one to the east, one to the south and one to the west. The name of these roots is The Great White Roots and their nature is Peace and Strength’
The tradition of the peace tree is still recognized by many, many tribes across this land.
Imagine with me, if you will, the protocol, ceremony, the strength, honor, and joy, the day the Iroquois confederacy was formed. I can picture in my mind’s eye, the five, and finally the sixth great tribes of the Iroquois, coming in full protocol and honor procession to the site of the planting of the Peace Tree.
A great hole was dug in the earth, and as the chief of each tribe stood as silent witness, his war chief would lead his warriors to this hole beside a sacred council fire, and one by one, each brave would hurl his weapons of war into the hole, to be used no more in fighting warriors from other tribes.
Ceremonially, each tribe would take their turn, and in grand procession, they too would lay down their weapons of earthly violence, until each nation had come to the hole.
Then, the hole was covered up, and a white pine (with its bundle of five needles, symbolic of the five tribes) was planted, The Peace Tree.
From the initial proclamation of the great law of peace we read: ‘Roots have spread out from the Tree of the Great Peace, one to the north, one to the east, one to the south and one to the west. The name of these roots is The Great White Roots and their nature is Peace and Strength’
http://www.iroquoisdemocracy.pdx.edu/html/greatlaw
Each tribe has its only culture, language, traditions, and history.
Many books have been written, but there is one, ‘Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee’ that is often used as a textbook on Indian reservations, that chronicles the conquering, and resulting enslavement of each Indian tribe.
In the case of the conquest of the Navajo, that resulted in ‘the long walk’.
Let’s look at snapshot I have taken from the history of the Navajo people for a minute:
Kit Carson and the long walk of the Navajo’s
I would encourage you to read the story of Kit Carson, the rope thrower, from the Navajo perspective, as recorded in ‘Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee’ by Dee Brown.
I quote:
“The final surrender and conquest of the Navajo by the US Calvary, was in the Canyon de Chelley campaign. In order to prevent the Navajo from attempting to leave the reservation they were sentenced to, a ‘scorched earth’ campaign had been waged, to destroy all of their crops and winter food supplies.
Canyon de Chelley was known as the last Navajo stronghold, and the ‘bread basket’ of the Navajo nation, with much fertile soil, where many varied crops were grown.
When the last free Navajo surrendered, Carson ordered his men ‘the complete destruction of Navajo properties in the canyon-including their fine peach orchards, more than five thousand trees. The Navajo could forgive the Rope Thrower for fighting them as a soldier, for making prisoners of them, even for destroying their winter food supplies, but the one act they never forgave him was cutting down their beloved peach trees.’ Dee Brown, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, p 27.
Proposed Peach tree/Peach Tree Ceremony on Navajo reservation, to heal the land.
In the Bible, the Word of God we read:
2 Chronicles 7:14
New King James Version (NKJV)
14 if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
On April 12th, we will be in Window Rock, Arizona, capital of the Navajo nation to donate, 100 peach trees to the Navajo nation, as a peace offering, an offering of love, reconciliation, and repentance, that God might have mercy upon America, and heal our land. That roots of these trees, would find the blessing of God, and somehow bring both to the Navajo, and America the nature of the law of peace – Strength and Peace.
The First Nations peoples have always loved and understood the land, far better than we. This is why per capita; more North American Indians have served in the US military, than any other group. They love this country.
Yet, it was also the US Calvary that overstepped in burning their beloved peach orchard, and enslaving them on a desolate reservation. Over 4,000 people died that first winter, of starvation and hypothermia, on both the long walk (over 800 miles through the snow), and on the reservation, when corrupt Indian agents did not supply the promised food needed to survive the winter.
Amazing thing about America is not that we haven’t made mistakes, but that this is the land of the free, home of the brave. There are still warriors of freedom alive and well here, and upon these I call again, into active service. Not with a rifle this time, but to lay down their lives for Jesus, and this land we all love. On April 12th, 2014 I, a warrior for Jesus, am joining some men of great honor, combat veterans that fear neither death, devils, nor the faces of men to go to Window Rock, Arizona, and ask forgiveness of the Navajo, for past atrocities committed.
We will be met by members of the Navajo council, and various pastors and leaders who understand….
No, we were not there, nor did we take part, but as I talk to veterans about some of the slaughters they have been involved in Vietnam, Korea, Iraq, and Bosnia, who have seen the bodies, and mourned the dead, they have seen excesses, casualties they wish had never occurred…
The Navajo have been a broken, conquered people, yet a people of great honor. From them came the famous code talkers that helped drive Allied forces to Victory on the Pacific Rim, in WWII, and they are Americans, host people, here long before any of us arrived.
Not anymore! The Navajo nation is now tied for number one with the Cherokee, as the largest Indian tribe in North America, with a rich cultural heritage, and a population over 300,000 members.
Window Rock Church of God, this July, will host one of the largest Christian gatherings of host peoples. It is expected that there will be at least 100 tribes represented at this event. What we will do in April, will be documented and part of this event, and will be used of God, as a powerful tool, to heal this land.
I am no longer looking for solutions from the White House, rather the church house, to restore America to the fullness of our greatness, purpose and destiny. As Ronald Reagan said, we are called to be ‘that city on a hill, a shining beacon of freedom to all the nations of the earth!’
Would you join me in this service to our country?
Here’s what I am asking you to do:
Pray!
First Nations culture understands respect, protocol, and honor given, and kept.
I am asking you to come, in full uniform if possible, and bring with you a gift of honor, to present as a peace offering to the Navajo people. I want you to ask their forgiveness for what has happened historically, that they too, can take their place in this great nation, no longer as 2nd class citizens, broken and forgotten on reservations, but as host peoples, who have been both forgiven by God, and who forgive, and join us in this bold claim, to see freedom reign once again across America. It is time to let the blood of Jesus wash this land again, or surely, it will again be washed afresh with yet another battle on our soils.
There is a cute story, called ‘The Legend of the Three Trees’, which is a cute animated movie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktYroQP5A1c&safe=active
In my story, there are also three types of tree: Peach trees, the white pine or ‘Peace tree’ of the Iroquois, and the tree, we who know Jesus call the cross, upon which Jesus died, for the sin and healing of all humanity.
Only His shed blood can truly heal any human heart, or any land on this war torn planet we call earth. This is the same earth from which God our Father, the Creator, the Great Spirit reached into, and formed Adam, the first man, from. In this sense, truly the earth is the mother of us all.
Romans 8:20-24
New King James Version (NKJV)
20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. 23 Not only that, but we also who have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. 24 For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees?
The purpose of this trip is to bring Jesus, Yeshua, the only way back to God our Father, the one and only mediator accepted by God as the sacrifice of our sins. It is our prayer; that He will do what only the Creator can do, recreate the relationship between the Navajo nation and the United States, fresh, new, in truth and honor free from the trail of blood, betrayal, lies, and treachery, in strength and peace. God heal this land!
When He is received, honored, and invited into the mess and mayhem of the creation, God literally recreates, redeems, heals, and delivers not only the people living in any particular land, but also according to this verse, the land itself.
It is my prayer, that despite the atrocities that have occurred on Navajo lands, all the way back to the time of Adam, that God would forgive, redeem, and heal all who live there, and the land itself!
The Iroquois confederacy still exists. In speaking with an Iroquois elder, and carrier of the Wampum, it is my hope and prayer, that he or another will issue a proclamation of peace towards the Navajo, and America, at this service, on behalf of the Iroquois. Freedom requires responsibility; it has always cost us dearly.
It time again to fight, for freedom, liberty, and justice for all….