black robe

History 111- section 2 9-13-00 “Black Robe” “Black Robe” is a historical novel written by Brian Moore during the mid 1980’s. It is a story about Native Americans and the French Jesuit missionaries who came to convert them to Christianity in the early 16th century. Father Laforgue is a French Jesuit missionary to the Huron in Quebec. The Governor of Quebec, Champlain, convinces a group of Huron natives, by bribing them with gifts, to escort …

…that they truly have a different view on life. The last line of the book is a true prayer for Laforgue, which reads, “Spare them. Spare them, O Lord. Do you love us? Yes.” In this he finally realizes that the Native Americans are just people who live a different life, which is filled with hardship. He realizes then that they cannot be converted and saved unless they truly believe in doing so for themselves.