#doctrine-of-christian-discovery

An Appeal to the American People—Overturning “Federal Indian Law”

Steven J. Schwartzberg urges Americans to overturn Federal Indian Law by confronting the colonial assumptions that still shape U.S. jurisprudence now.

The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory·Apr 16·2 min read

An Intergenerational and Perpetual Imperium of Domination and Subjugation of Indigenous Peoples: The Doctrine of Christian Discovery and Royal Supremacy

Phillip Rodgers-Falk argues that native title and colonial sovereignty preserve Indigenous subordination through terra nullius and racial hierarchies.

The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory·Apr 16·2 min read

doctrine-of-christian-discovery johnson-v-mintosh indigenous-sovereignty white-supremacy

A Postscript: Sovereignty is Still the Issue

This postscript argues Indigenous nations need full sovereignty, rejecting settler carve-outs and urging a healing return to precolonial lifeways now.

The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory·Apr 16·2 min read

doctrine-of-christian-discovery johnson-v-mintosh indigenous-sovereignty white-supremacy

My Decades-long Inquiry Into the Doctrine of Christian Discovery and Domination

Steven Newcomb reflects on decades studying Christian Discovery, showing how law and language normalized domination over Native nations for centuries.

The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory·Apr 16·2 min read

doctrine-of-christian-discovery us-property-system native-nations cultural-reclamation

Right & Respectful Relations: A Memoir of the Road to the Historic Yakama Nation Amicus Brief Challenging ‘Christian Discovery’ in Washington State V. Cougar Den

Jode Goudy recounts how the Yakama Nation built a historic amicus brief, connecting treaty rights, sovereignty, and opposition to Christian Discovery.

The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory·Apr 16·2 min read

doctrine-of-christian-discovery yakama-nation federal-indian-law plenary-power

Conclusion: Dismantling the Doctrine of Christian Discovery Cultivating Right Relations

The conclusion calls for decolonization beyond legal reform, centering Indigenous law, land return, and right relations to resist Christian Discovery.

The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory·Apr 16·2 min read

doctrine-of-christian-discovery johnson-v-mintosh indigenous-sovereignty white-supremacy

A Preface to Challenging the Justifications of Domination Through Religion: “We Were Planting Corn, and They Were Planting Crosses”

Preface to a special issue examining Christian Discovery’s role in white supremacy, law, and education, with decolonial paths grounded in Indigenous justice.

The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory·Mar 3·2 min read

doctrine-of-christian-discovery johnson-v-mintosh indigenous-sovereignty white-supremacy

“Engineering Marvel”: Towards Resisting the Affective Politics of Erie Canal Heritage

Nagle critiques Erie Canal heritage marketing, showing how engineered marvel obscures Haudenosaunee dispossession and calls settlers to affective resistance.

The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory·Mar 3·2 min read

erie-canal doctrine-of-christian-discovery heritage-tourism affective-resistance

Charting the Doctrine in the Colonial Archive: Papal Bulls and the Translation of the ‘Discovery’ Purpose

Modrow shows how papal bulls transformed crusade theology into global colonial strategy, legitimizing Indigenous dispossession and imperial expansion.

The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory·Mar 3·2 min read

doctrine-of-christian-discovery colonialism papal-bulls crusade-ideology

Introduction

Introduction to a global volume on Christian Discovery, linking law, religion, and pedagogy, with Indigenous sovereignty and decolonial justice today.

The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory·Mar 3·2 min read

doctrine-of-christian-discovery johnson-v-mintosh indigenous-sovereignty white-supremacy

Unselling the Classroom: Confronting History and Ourselves

Berlin urges teachers to confront settler colonialism and white supremacy by centering Indigenous history critical pedagogy, and accountability today.

The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory·Mar 3·1 min read

doctrine-of-christian-discovery colonialism papal-bulls crusade-ideology