Elisabeth Elliot was a Christian missionary, author, and speaker. Her first husband, Jim Elliot, was killed in 1956 while attempting to make missionary contact with the Auca people of eastern Ecuador. She later spent two years as a missionary to the tribe members who killed her husband. After living in South America for many years, she returned to the United States, wrote over twenty books, and became widely known as an author and a speaker. Elliot toured the country well into her seventies, sharing her knowledge and talking about her experience.
The Waorani, Waodani, or Huaorani, also known as the Waos, are an Indigenous people from the Amazonian Region of Ecuador who have marked differences from other ethnic groups from Ecuador. The alternate name Auca is a pejorative exonym used by the neighboring Quechua natives, and commonly adopted by Spanish-speakers as well. Auca means 'savage'.
Philip James Elliot was an American Christian missionary and one of five people killed during Operation Auca, an attempt to evangelize the Huaorani people of Ecuador.
Nathanael Saint was an evangelical Christian missionary pilot who, along with four others, was killed in Ecuador while attempting to evangelize the Huaorani people through efforts known as Operation Auca.
The Tagaeri are an eastern Waorani people living in Yasuni National Park, in the Ecuadorian Amazon Basin, named after one of their members, Tagae. Nearby Kichwa communities sometimes refer to them as Awashiri, or "high-ground people". They live a hunting and foraging lifestyle and have resisted outside contact, making them one of the so-called uncontacted peoples of the world. In addition to Tagaeri, the area is home to their kin, the Taromenane, another eastern Waorani group.
The Curaray River is a river in eastern Ecuador and Peru. It is a tributary of the Napo River, which is part of the Amazon basin. The land along the river is home to several indigenous people groups, including the Kichwa and Huaorani. The river itself is home to caimans and piranhas.
Operation Auca was an attempt by five Evangelical Christian missionaries from the United States to bring Christianity to the Waorani or Huaorani people of the rain forest of Ecuador. The Waorani, also known pejoratively as Aucas, were an isolated tribe known for their violence, against both their own people and outsiders who entered their territory. With the intention of being the first Christians to evangelize the previously uncontacted Waorani, the missionaries began making regular flights over Waorani settlements in September 1955, dropping gifts, which were reciprocated. After several months of exchanging gifts, on January 3, 1956, the missionaries established a camp at "Palm Beach", a sandbar along the Curaray River, a few kilometers from Waorani settlements. Their efforts came to an end on January 8, 1956, when all five—Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Ed McCully, Peter Fleming, and Roger Youderian—were attacked and speared by a group of Waorani warriors. The news of their deaths was broadcast around the world, and Life magazine covered the event with a photo essay.
Rachel Saint was an American evangelical Christian missionary who worked in Ecuador, with her language helper Dayuma translating the Gospel of Mark and the book of Acts into the Wao tededo language of the Huaorani people.
Roger Youderian was an American Christian missionary to Ecuador who, along with four others, was killed while attempting to evangelize the Huaorani people through efforts known as Operation Auca.
Theophilus McCully was a Christian missionary to Ecuador who, along with four other missionaries, was killed while attempting to evangelize the Huaorani people, through efforts known as Operation Auca.
Shell is a city located on the western edge of the Ecuadorian Amazon and in the eastern foothills of the Andes. It is located about 94 miles (151 km) southeast of Quito, and roughly 4 miles (6.4 km) west of the provincial capital, Puyo. Its name comes from the Royal Dutch Shell corporation.
Mincaye Enquedi was a Huao Ecuadorian preacher and church elder. In 1956, he took part in the now infamous attack on five missionaries during Operation Auca. He is believed to have speared both Nate Saint and Ed McCully during the attack.
Stephen Farris Saint is an Ecuadorian-born business entrepreneur, pilot, and author. He is known for being the son of Nate Saint, a famous missionary pilot, as well as for his own work among indigenous tribes.
Beyond the Gates of Splendor is a documentary film that was released in 2004. It chronicles the events leading up to and following Operation Auca, an attempt to contact the Huaorani tribe of Ecuador in which five American missionaries were killed. The film was produced by Bearing Fruit Productions and distributed by Every Tribe Entertainment.
Dayuma was a member of the Huaorani tribe and a citizen of Ecuador. She is a central figure in the Operation Auca saga, in that she was the first Huao to convert to Christianity, as well as the missionaries' key to unlocking the Huaorani language, a language that had not been previously studied. Later Dayuma also became an influential figure in her tribe.
End of the Spear is a book written by Steve Saint. It was published in connection with the film of the same name. The book chronicles the continuing story that began with Elisabeth Elliot's 1957 bestseller Through Gates of Splendor.
Through Gates of Splendor is a 1957 best selling book written by Elisabeth Elliot. The book tells the story of Operation Auca, an attempt by five American missionaries – Jim Elliot, Pete Flemming, Ed McCully, Nate Saint, and Roger Youderian – to reach the Huaorani tribe of eastern Ecuador. All five of the men were killed by the tribe. The book is Elliot's first book, and arguably her most well-known work.
Indigenous People's Technology and Education Center (I-TEC) is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit Christian missionary organization located in Dunnellon, Florida. Founded by Steve Saint, the stated purpose of I-TEC is to empower indigenous churches to overcome the technological and educational hurdles that stand in the way of their independence."
Avant Ministries is a non-profit, Christian mission agency focused on planting and developing churches worldwide. Headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, and Winnipeg, Manitoba, Avant missionaries serve in church planting and church support ministries in Africa, Asia, Europe and North and South America.
