The Consequential Age of Discovery

Since the beginning of time, humans have been led by an insatiable desire to explore the world. This is particularly evident during the Renaissance time period. While explorations in the past have not always brought great change, several of the discoveries have had astronomical effects on the world.

Trade routes dominated early European economies

Vasco de Gama was a Portuguese explorer. He was one of the first to sail around the horn of Africa and landed in India. What makes this voyage particularly significant is the trade routes that it opened up. The spice routes brought great riches to Portugal. The effects of controlling these trade routes would set in motion events that would change the world. I would argue that this is one of the most important events in history. This time of prosperity that Portugal enjoyed was an inspiration to rival nations that riches lay in undiscovered trade routes. This is one of the primary reasons Spain sent Christopher Colombus in search of a different route to the Indies. While watching their neighbors grow richer by the day, they were willing to take a bold step to find a better way.

The discovery of the Americas by Christopher Colombus led to a series of events that would change the world forever. Conquerors, missionaries, and explorers alike would be drawn to the New World for the unknown opportunities that could be discovered. The New world offered seemingly limitless land. Many an explorer left their homes in search of treasures in the Americas. Other notable explorers of the New World include:

• Hernan Cortez who conquered the Aztecs
• Francisco Pizarro who conquered the Incas
• Jacques Cartier explored Eastern Canada 

Jessie Bruner wrote a blog post titled "World Discovery: A Necessary Evil..?" about how the conquistadors and other ruthless explorers were a necessary evil to discover the new lands. their methods were inhumane, yet, it opened up a world of opportunity that would lead to the founding of many great nations. Spain would soon be plagued by war, which would tear the New World from the Spanish control, however, they have already left their mark as millions of South and Central Americans still speak Spanish today.

America would continue to draw explorers and settlers for centuries to come. Carter Shearer wrote a blog titled "Manifest Destiny"  about the people who would soon sweep the nation as they spread west. As America was settled by immigrants from across the world, it would soon become a land of opportunity like none before it. Unclaimed land was oftentimes given away by the government to motivate settlers to develop lands.

Despite all these incredible discoveries, I believe the most significant discovery was not of lands or people.  I would argue that the discovery of the printing press was the most consequential discovery of the Renaissance, and perhaps of any time.  It revolutionized the spread of information. The Protestant Reformation could have never succeeded without it, as many had tried before to reform the Roman Catholic Church. The common folk finally had access to books, including the Bible, which had never been possible before in history. This opened a world of discovery for the lower classes.

Image credit: TheAndrasBarta World maps 2015, by Andras Barta licensed under CC 2.0

A Stranger at Home

Coinciding with the Renaissance era was a time of exploration by countries of Europe. In particular, Portugal and Spain pioneered the oceans for "God, gold, and glory", or in other words, for the sake of missions, economic prosperity, and global influence/political dominance. Naturally, their European neighbors followed suit. Today, we often discuss their adventures with a heavy grain of salt and a disdainful tone as we remember the harrowing exploitations that took place. But upon reading French explorer Michel de Montaigne's Of Cannibals, I've come to consider that not every adventurer sought to prey upon third-world countries.

A view of the outside world molds the lens in which we view our own. Just as Montaigne saw cannibalism as less savage than aspects of punishment in his home country, travel can lead us to question our morals and mannerisms. This shapes our identity-- and perhaps most of all, with whom we identify.

While living in Japan last August, I did more than just appreciate their culture-- I adopted it. This isn't meant to sound boastful, but to simply express how I related to certain aspects of their culture more than my own. Dignity, modesty, respect, diligence, politeness, kindness... all inherent parts of Japanese custom, and all values which I prize highly. I felt like a sound wave that had been tuned-in to the correct frequency.

This leads one to ask: did the conquistadors ever relate to the cultural ideals of their captive country better than their homeland? Did explorers ever long to live "tribally", or feel like a fish-out-of-water upon arriving home? Looking forward to the Enlightenment, it seems that the explorations of Europe paved the way for a new humanist empathy to take root in Europe.

Perhaps we'd do well to rethink our assumptions about the explorers. Maybe they, too, became strangers to their homelands, and in turn, propagated tolerance across Europe for the indigenous world. 

Zion or Utopia: What Latter Day Saints Can Learn From the Age of Conquest

During the Age of Conquest of the Renaissance, people were sailing to new lands and becoming acquainted with cultures that were vastly different from their own. Though this was a great period that brought new information and experiences to people, there were some rather negative side effects. People from other lands were often depicted as savages that needed to become "civilized," and though the men and women of the Renaissance had quality resources that could improve their way of life, they also tried to completely impose their own culture upon them in an attempt to make a Utopia.