YOUR SAY

CULTURE CHECK

Thanks for your article (AG 142) on the 1948 scientific expedition to Arnhem Land. The introduction to the boxed item “A colonial legacy” (page 99) claims this was “a time when Christian missions sought to wipe out the ‘heathen’ customs of Arnhem Land’s Aboriginal people” and needs correction. In the 1940s, apart from a Methodist Mission at Maningrida, the Church Missionary Society had only three or four missionaries in Arnhem Land working among 5000 Aboriginal people. Although the missionaries longed to share the Christian faith, most of their time was spent in healthcare and serving the people in practical ways. When spiritual and cultural