Bruchko: The Astonishing True Story of a 19-Year-Old American, His Capture by the Motilone Indians and His Adventures in Christianizing the Stone Age Tribe

Super Short Summary

Bruchko is a 1978 memoir by American author Bruce Olson about his time working as a Christian missionary in Venezuela and Colombia with an Indigenous tribe, the Barí. Olson depicts his missionary work as based on a divine mission that followed a spiritual experience he had as a youth. At 19, he moved from the United States to South America, where he went to the jungles in the Colombian-Venezuelan border to convert the Barí to Christianity. Olson’s thesis in Bruchko is that missionary efforts can be aided by adapting Christian teachings to fit local worldviews rather than imposing Western Christianity. Themes include The Complexities of Cross-Cultural Missionary Work, The Transformative Power of Personal Connections, and The Importance of Living in Accordance with Faith. The book has sparked controversy due to Olson’s perceived endorsement of modern-day colonialism. Please note, the text includes portrayals of Indigenous people that may be seen as stereotypical or demeaning and some violent descriptions of death.