Black Robe

Blurb

Black Robe, first published in 1985, is a historical novel by Brian Moore set in New France in the 17th century.
The novel follows Father Laforgue, a French Jesuit priest traveling up river to repopulate the mission to the Huron Indians. It chronicles his interactions with the "heathen" tribes of Algonkian and Iroquois, as well as his inner struggles of faith, as he travels upriver to bring salvation to the Hurons. As he is traveling with the Huron Indians, he realizes how difficult it will be to change their minds about their current faith.
At First the Huron Indians create an agreement with the French people to allow "Black Robe" and his accomplice Daniel to travel with them for a few weeks. As "Black Robe" and Daniel are trying to bring salvation to the Hurons they get labeled as demons and are outcast from the group.
Moore juxtaposes the "superstitious" religious beliefs of the Native people with the Christian religious beliefs of Father Laforgue, which the reader can see very nearly mirror each other.
The book was adapted into the 1991 film of the same title directed by Bruce Beresford, for which Moore wrote the screenplay.