"Native thoughts on Religion"
As a Native growing up, it took me a long time to understand why Non-Native people
have so many houses of worship. And I found it even harder to understand why they were all praying from the same bible and to the same God, yet they had to have so many different names for their places of worship. I even heard many of them say their God was better than the one just 20 blocks down the street: so many were divided on their religious views and beliefs, yet it was the same God they were referring too.
The Native never had paintings or sculptors of our Creator. Why else would we call Him the Great Mystery, if we were all able to paint His likeness? Further more it would be a great insult, according to our beliefs to do that, because after all, we consider the Creator above all things including ourselves. Many Native Artists in their art will always leave a tiny mistake, not noticeable to the human eye just out of respect to show that we are not perfect, thereby acknowledging that the only perfect being is the Creator.
In traveling through Europe, I have seen so many likenesses of Jesus Christ. European artists have changed facial likeness with each passing century. I have seen one with black hair and somewhat dark skin and in most recent years in some portrayals on film he was blue eyed with very light brown hair with streaks of shiny blond hair. This does not seem to bother devout followers. I have never heard anyone question the reasoning behind this. Of course, I guess the idea is to have a painting to fit all peoples.
Another thing I find very disturbing is the commercialism process. The
sale of, especially Catholic artifacts has to be one of the greatest markets in the world. I was brought up with the belief that one should not pray using false idols. Certainly, in most Native religious beliefs, like the Hopi, who have certain Katchinas, that represent different seasons or parts of Mother Earth, one could call these idols, which is certainly not so. For when it comes to prayer, Natives, instinctively, do it directly to the Creator to the heavens above, and not through any machine manufactured or man made imaginary representation there of.
It is a known fact that Natives never had books. The first time they saw a book, was from the missionaries who introduced them to one called the bible. They had never heard of Jesus Christ, or John the Baptist, who baptized the early Christian Prophet in a river.
Natives in this country used the baptismal system on a daily basis. That is why most villages or Tipis were almost always placed in close proximity to rivers. A system, by the way, that was seldom used by the first Europeans that landed on our shores. I guess that after being baptized in their churches, they felt no need to use water too often anymore as part of their daily cleansing ritual. In fact, I understand that they hardly ever cleaned the elaborate clothing they wore in their country either. That is why there was a such great demand for overwhelmingly strong perfume in most European cities at the time.
Anthropologists estimate that Natives were on this land for ten thousand years before the White man landed and touched their soil. Does anyone wonder how the inhabitants of the Native World survived that long without the introduction of a European bible?
The argument of the European Missionaries with Elders and Chiefs that their biblical God was the only one they should be worshipping, was futile, as one Elder put it to some Missionaries, "if your God is better than ours, and you had such faith in Him, why did He allow you to leave your land across the waters and come and take ours"?
Natives in this country, although, having different names for the Creator because there were over 350 different languages, basically worshipped The same Creator. Names varied from: "The Great Mystery", "The Great Spirit", "The Creator", "Usan" (Apache), "Wakantanka or Tunkasila" (Sioux), "Yei-bi-chai" (Navajo) or "U nay klah nah hey", the "Creator of All Things"; (Cherokee) etc… It basically meant the same: "Creator"; always in close relation to Mother Earth.
Though there were over 350 different languages spoken, by, over 555 Nations, they all prayed, "Oh yes, they had prayers too". Here is one of the many prayers:
"Great Spirit, help us stay in the way of the truth; and keep our families and our tribe in balance with Mother Earth. Give us strong spiritual energy of mind and body to help us guide all our young on your righteous path. Bring peace to the entire world. Above all, we thank you for the daily morning sun, and the moon and stars at night. We accept and thank you for the four weather seasons, for you know why we need these changes. We thank you with our prayers for the soil of Mother Earth which brings us good crops of grass for our four leggeds and winged friends; healthy unpolluted water and food for all peoples of the world".
Just like the: Greeks and Romans that had different Gods they worshipped, so did the Natives:
The Hopi people still call on their ancestral spirit, Katchinas for help. They believe that for 6 months of the year, these spirits leave their mountain homes and visit the tribe. When they do this, they bring along with them good health to the Hopi and rain for their crops.
HOPI Names of Festivals:
The Powamu Festival (Arrival in Jan. or Feb.) celebrates the spirits return, just like the Niman Katchina. (Going away ceremony in July) These Festivals are celebrated with Ceremonial Dancing. They have a different name for each month, except April/May, of the year: Pamuya=Jan., Powamu=Feb, Anktioni=March, Soyhim=April/May, Niman=July, Snake or Flute=August, Marau=Sept, Oagole=Oct,. Wuwuchim=Nov. Soyala=Dec.
In essence, the Hopi live in constant prayer as most Native Peoples do. And they have since the beginning of time. Yet the Christian missionaries would repeatedly say to them as well as all other Nations that they were praying to the wrong God. In trying to analyze their Christian thinking, I would imagine that missionaries had been so indoctrinated in their thinking, that in their mind, they honestly believed that their Christian words were the only truth and that it was their solemn duty to enforce it on these loving humans.
Other Nations also have different images that represent the seasonal and harvest times of the year. Natives still idolize their four legged and winged brothers and sisters of the world. In fact, it is believed that a very long time ago, they spoke to each other and were much closer, when there was not the fear between them that exists today.
Though there are over 555 Native Nations in the USA, most, still have great respect and feel a sacred closeness to Mother Earth, and even though many follow White Religious beliefs, they find ways to intertwine them with those of their own Mother Earth, Father Sky and the Four Directions.
Many Natives today, have adopted the missionary's Christian beliefs, introduced to them from the mid-1400 on, but many still live close to the traditional Native way too. And those that, at one time left their traditional religion for Christianity altogether, today, are slowly returning, if not totally, at least in part, to their old cultural way which includes religious beliefs. Natives have discovered, along with many Europeans, that something is missing, or has been omitted from the Old and New Testament writings, with much being lost in it's translation from the Hebraic and Aramaic original text. New discoveries propagate daily that provide these facts.
Natives could never understand how Whites set aside only one day for prayer, whereas the Natives prayed every single moment of every day. The Creator is with us, in our thoughts every moment of our lives. He is every word we speak, everything we see and do, everything we hear and everywhere we walk. That is the reason my mother would always say, "Walk in beauty, speak with beauty and listen with beauty".
And further, we should always think before we speak, so that we do not hurt anyone with our words. We must listen carefully to the words of those who speak, in order not to misinterpret the meaning of their words.