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The Road of Reconciliation In Sweden: Meeting the Sámi in their own Culture He Must Increase Colonization: Weapons, Gifts, Diseases and Medicine Missional Community
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Boarding School Healing Project
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Redemption, Reconciliation, Restoration: Journeys Toward Wholeness
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A Native Christian Matriarchal View of Reconciliation: An Exegetical Review of Romans 5: 6-8 Annotated Bibliography: Jesuits and Indigenous Canada: 1540-1778
NAIITS The JOURNAL of the NORTH AMERICAN INSTITUTE for INDIGENOUS THEOLOGICAL STUDIES
Volume 5
2007 PUBLISHED BY
North American Institute for Indigenous Theological Studies EDITOR Wendy Peterson
PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS Asbury Seminary: ESJ School of World Mission Biola University Canadian Mennonite University First Nations Alliance Churches (C&MA) of Canada Indigenous Christian Alliance My People International Providence College and Theological Seminary The Salvation Army Ethics Centre Urbana-InterVarsity / USA InterVarsity Canada Wiconi International William & Catherine Booth College
© NAIITS, 2007
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ABOUT NAIITS
Vision Statement
NAIITS exists to address topics of present concern in Native North American ministry and mission. These topics range from evangelism to discipleship to leadership development as they relate to Native Christian ministry and worship. Through symposiums, publishing and dialogue, the Institute seeks to bring together men and women of varied experience and background in mission and ministry from within the mainstream of evangelical Christian faith, intentionally providing a forum for the development of biblical and theological thought from within Native North American points of view. NAIITS seeks to partner with the emerging coalition of Native ministry, sometimes referred to as the ―Indigenous Christian Alliance,‖ as an excellent way to create dynamic partnerships in Native North American ministry.
Head Office NAIITS Suite 428 35-2855 Pembina Hwy Winnipeg MB CANADA R3T 4R6 (204) 261-5676 Fax (204) 261-9164
[email protected] Board of Directors Terry LeBlanc Richard Twiss Wendy Peterson Cornelius Buller Adrian Jacobs Randy Woodley Casey Church Ray Aldred Cheryl Bear Barnetson Steve Cheramie Risingson Shari Russell Gavriel Gefen NAIITS
Mi‘kmaq/Acadian(Alberta), Chair Lakota (Washington State) Métis (Manitoba) Mennonite (Manitoba) Cayuga (Ontario) Keetowah Cherokee (Oregon) Potawatomi (New Mexico) Cree (Alberta) Carrier (British Columbia) Biloxi-Chittamacha (Alabama) Saulteaux (Manitoba) Jewish (Israel) iii
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GUIDELINES for SUBMISSION
An important component of the work of NAIITS includes publication. NAIITS publishes papers and book reviews that reflect an Aboriginal perspective on doing theology within an Aboriginal environment and related subjects. Ideas for papers and/or completed materials may be submitted under the following guidelines: Length should not exceed 3000 words for papers, 5000 for requested feature articles. Book reviews are to be of relevant recent publications and should not exceed 800 words. Format is to be based on Turabian, Seventh Edition (see this journal for template) Submissions must include footnotes and a bibliography. Submissions are required by October 31 of each year. Email submissions to
[email protected]
CONTRIBUTORS to this ISSUE Pakistani; Minnesota Cree; Regina Cherokee; Michigan Nuu-chah-nulth; British Columbia Washington State Métis; Manitoba Cherokee; Michigan Sweden
Charles Amjad-Ali David Bird Robert Francis Dean Johnson, Ivan Wells and Victoria Wells Elizabeth Levesque Wendy Peterson Andrea Smith Gerard Willemsen
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TABLE of CONTENTS About this Issue
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Section I: Articles Charles Amjad-Ali Redemption, Reconciliation, Restoration: Journeys Toward Wholeness
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Gerard F. Willemsen The Road of Reconciliation in Sweden: Meeting the Sámi In Their Own Culture
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David Bird He Must Increase
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Robert Francis Colonization: Weapons, Gifts, Diseases and Medicines
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Dean Johnson, Ivan Wells and Victoria Wells Missional Community
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Andrea Smith Boarding School Healing Project
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Section II: Related Paper Elizabeth Levesque A Native Christian Matriarchal View of Reconciliation: An Exegetical Review of Romans 5: 6-8
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Section III: Annotated Bibliography Wendy Peterson Jesuits and Indigenous Canada: 1540 - 1778
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ABOUT THIS ISSUE
The 2007 NAIITS Symposium convened in Sioux Falls Seminary, South Dakota, around the theme Redemption, Reconciliation, Restoration: Journeys Toward Wholeness.‖ As Canadian and US Governments debate the pros and cons of offering apologies to Native peoples for the years of torment and family disintegration wrought by residential and boarding school policies, the lack of understanding of reconciliation and restoration has become increasingly obvious. Even in the church—where such things should be a given—teachings absorbed with mother‘s milk, as it were—the need for clearer, more biblically sound understandings of reconciliation is abundantly evident. Instead of deeply rooted understandings of repentance, reconciliation and restoration, popular theologies abound which are rooted in one or another version of the ―Great Escape‖– avoidance of responsibility. ―That was then, this is now!‖ is the common refrain. One wonders at such near-sightedness. Paul‘s admonition—we are to be judged by the deeds in the body whether of good or of evil—is all but unheard. More and more frequently this theological side-street has the faithful decrying any suggestion that they accept responsibility for church policies and practices rooted in a history any further back than breakfast. In contrast, the Native world understands ―Redemption, reconciliation and restoration: Journeys Toward Wholeness‖ as a statement of lived reality—in some cases a century or more of it. But we do not stay there. Hope is renewed with regularity and, as in the case of virtually every treaty, we return to extend ourselves in relationship in hopes that this time it will be different. We live in the hope of meaningful relationship for that is what the treaties promise. Life may be lived with constant reminders of transgression in our communities and families, but for those moving toward wholeness, it has also become the learned behaviour of reconciliation, the experience of redemption and the hope for restoration. NAIITS
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For decades, if not the past century-and-a-half, Native peoples have lacked a common narrative around which emergence into renewed life could be wrapped. Ezekiel 37 appears as though it has become that. It is a narrative about reconciliation and restoration; about God‘s gracious return of a devastated people to a place of wholeness and meaningful life in their own land. The promised Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Canada (a commission established for survivors of Residential Schools to enable them to tell their stories) is faltering because its terms of reference are predicated on faulty understandings of what Truth is and what reconciliation requires. When the commissioners who are to be the beacon cast no light, how are we to be guided? The same is even more true of the deeper works of reconciliation required with the history and pain of Native peoples in Canada and the United States. Unless we, the called of the Father, lead, who will lead and, where will we go if they do? Our theme in this issue of the NAIITS Journal then, is all the more important especially, but not exclusively, for Native North American peoples and those others who have come here and entered into treaty with us. We dare not buy into the popular notions of reconciliation that are divorced from past behaviour, focused only on some as yet unknown eschatological future. Those lead to self-centered ideas of redemption and relationship and, they lead once again to spiritual abuse or missional arrogance. Biblical reconciliation and restoration – true redemption – promises life to the full. That is the promise of John 10:10. Nmultes, Terry LeBlanc Chair
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SECTION I Articles This section of Volume 5 of the Journal of North American Institute for Indigenous Theological Studies: NAIITS consists of papers presented at the November 2007 Symposium sponsored by NAIITS. It was hosted by the Sioux Falls Seminary, Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
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REDEMPTION, RECONCILIATION, RESTORATION: Journeys Toward Wholeness Charles Amjad-Ali
Preface Let me begin this paper with a quote from Ohiyesa (or Charles Alexander Eastman) so that I can provide the right preface for this paper: The religion of the Indian is the last thing about him that the man of another race will ever understand. First, the Indian does not speak of these deep matters so long as he believes in them, and when he has ceased to believe he speaks inaccurately and slightingly. Second, even if he can be induced to speak, the racial and religious prejudice of the other stands in the way of his sympathetic comprehension.1
As an academic deeply committed to the gospel, to the mission of the church, to the world that God loves, and to justice and righteousness as a part of the Christian way of being in the world, this has been one of the hardest papers I have had to write. First, one has to combine the rigors of academic work with the awesome task of approaching a sacred which is not always articulated but is pervasively and palpably present. An articulation of this kind I felt might be seen as a violation. Second, I was approaching an aspect of the history of colonialism that is not often talked about but is nonetheless still fully intact, where the original owners of the land are seen as outsiders and the invaders as the real representatives of the land. Every year America celebrates ―Independence Day‖ with great gusto and fanfare but one is left asking the questions: Whose independence? Independence from whom? In the huge collection of material I read while preparing for this talk no one brought this issue to the fore, and that bothered me. Charles Alexander Eastman (Ohiyesa), The Soul of the Indian: An Interpretation (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1980 first published in 1911), p. x 1
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Third, as someone from the Indian sub-continent, when I look at this history, and I hope none of you mind me saying so, I think of what would have happened had Christopher Columbus actually discovered India. Looking at your history and experience of genocide, oppression and dislocation, to me your continuing ability to persevere under these circumstances as an imaginative, artistic, metaphoric, and symbolically integrated community and universe is simply awesome. That is not to minimize the difficulties inside the Native communities nor to romanticize them as some kind of ecological superheroes, but to recognize that the community continues to survive as a distinct, identifiable group against an all-encompassing hegemony. This survival is a living witness to the resilience, validity, and efficacy of the Native way of being, their spirituality and their role in the cosmos. I don‘t know how we would have managed had Columbus actually landed in India! That he gave you the misnomer ―Indians‖ out of stubbornly bad geography, and that the name stuck and has now acquired an acceptance, even among the indigenous people or the First Nations, is in itself a statement about the ability of native people to cross borders back and forth, to live in plurality with plurality, and yet to maintain their dignity and honor and a unique identity. Truly in all humility and awe I must say that in that sense you have been our salvation. Because of what happened to you not only have we survived, but we have learned how to survive under the current global hegemony. For me, your sacrifice, your dislocation, your oppression, is always sacramental. It is a source of grace and a source of memory, the anamnesis which is so central to the sacrament of the Eucharist. Having said this let me move on to the paper itself, though I request that you keep my preface in mind. Historical Background America has made claims of multiculturalism and plurality of identities for a long time. These claims are often expressed in its metaphors of the great melting pot, salad bowls, soup bowl, etc. But these metaphors applied to a plurality which is almost entirely an intra-white European reality. Into this metaphoric melting pot, the Native Americans, whose land was stolen, were never to be incorporated, nor were African Americans, whose labor was stolen, ever to be a part of it. NAIITS
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Rather these metaphors were generated in order to deal with the inter-tribal clashes which had dominated Europe for millennia before their immigration to America. These metaphors of integration were kept broad enough and open enough conceptually so they could help to integrate European tribal identities, and to form a new community and nationality, but they were not meant to be broad enough to extend to the integration of peoples of color and those belonging to nonEuropean cultures, who were de facto, if not de jure, excluded from this project. Even the inclusivity of whites was not as open as these metaphors pretended, for those from non-protestant cultures (the Irish, Italian and Polish Catholics) were also kept out of the state formation processes in the United States. Remember, as late as 1960, there was a major debate about whether a Catholic could be president of USA. All those who were not part of these integrating metaphors were treated as hyphenated Americans, based on their color and origin, and even what part of Europe they represented. The division of Europe after the emergence of CatholicProtestant plurality, which resulted in the Thirty Years War, and finally the end of Christendom, led to the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. 2 This treaty is correctly interpreted as the beginning of the formation of modern nation-states and secular politics in Europe (secular here meaning non-Catholic, and nothing more intellectual than that). It must be remembered that the official break-up of the Holy Roman Empire resulted in the production This was not true for all European states even though they all want to see their origination from 1648. It is truly ironic to see that some of the states we usually name as old states in Europe are in fact even newer than the US in their present structure but do not want to acknowledge this. For example, modern Italy only comes into existence after Giuseppe Garibaldi‘s Risorgimento around 1870 brought the various kingdoms and independent republics together. Modern Germany dates only to 1871 when Otto von Bismarck brought together the many kingdoms, grand duchies, duchies, principalities, free Hanseatic cities, and the imperial territory together. The newest version of this Germany (and not ―reunification‖ as we are asked to refer to it) was founded only after 1989. This is not even to mention the newer states that have come into existence or were reconfigured after the Berlin Wall came down in 1989. 2
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of the nation-states in Europe, the last instalment of which we witnessed in the 1990s and early 2000s. The four requirements for European state formation were based on the principles of homogeneity rather than multi-ethnic, multi-religious, and multi-cultural state formation: 1. 2.
3. 4.
Homogeneity of ethnos of a given people, this was built into the very name nation-state; Homogeneity of ethos by which we mean, language, culture, religion, worldview, etc.; [Neither of these two homogeneities were based on or drawn across color lines but were part of tribal identities within Europe where everybody was white but coming from different ethnos and ethos. Take for example a very small part of Europe called Scandinavia, which has a population of roughly 19.1 million people: it is divided into three different countries (Sweden, Denmark and Norway) based on their respective ethnos and ethos. Although most of these people became Lutherans by the end of 16th century, their ethnic diversity and variation in languages, cultic and cultural patterns and aspirations, etc., still constituted not only difference but also hostility towards one another, which in recent times gets expressed in a half-joking manner, not only in Scandinavia, but in their emigrant descendant populations in the USA]; A very well defined topos in which a homogenous ethnos and ethos resided, dwelled and had its being (i.e., motheror father-land); and Precisely because of the specificity of this topos, very well defined borders became critically important in Europe. Beyond a specific topos and its borders was yet another topos with its own homogenous ethos and ethnos.3
It must also be remembered that one of the clauses in the treaty of Westphalia was a re-articulation of the treaty of Augsburg of 1555, that the religion of the prince would be the religion of the state. Whereas the treaty of Augsburg was restricted to Lutheran princes, the treaty of Westphalia expanded it now to include the Calvinist princes, who had been behind the beginnings of the Thirty Years War in 1618. The second treaty, however, still left out the Anabaptists from this equation. Those who did not want to follow the religion of their particular state had the right to migrate away from it to one which fit their religious need; thus allowing freedom of religion and movement, but still restricting religion to the determination of the princes. This was a total integration of church and state, despite Luther‘s rightful demand to separate them. 3
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There is a second state formation process in addition to the European one mentioned above. This is the state formation process of immigrant states, of which the USA is the fundamental paradigm. The USA in its creation process had difficulty with all of the above-mentioned elements but wanted to see itself as a continuity of “Western civilization.” The immigrants carried all the European concepts of ethnos and ethos and the old biographical references intact. Seen in light of the European principles outlined above, America was therefore always a multicultural and multiethnic state, but these were not going to help the process of making a new state. For in the state formation processes of America, the European root was seen to be of critical importance and the USA was to be an extension of the European pattern in spite of significant differences. The heterogeneous European community for which the state formation took place needed some form of new homogenizing, synthetic, transcending and essential ethnicity, for here were people who had fought each other for hundreds of years over their specific ethnicities and ethos. How were they to live together and form a cohesive whole? The quest for e pluribus Unum in this heterogeneity led to three things, which lent themselves to the creation of a homogenous entity. One was that they were all European whites. While this was a broad enough category, it had proved insufficient in Europe where the different ethnos and ethos had mattered more than the color of skin. In the new world however, whiteness was invoked for its utility in providing a transcendent homogenizing principal. Whiteness thus for the first time became a principle ethnos, helped indeed by the desire to keep the native peoples (and slaves) out of this process. To further elaborate and differentiate among the whites, ethos was utilized as the second element. Here Protestant Christianity provided a homogenization and transcendence. The first real political separation of church and state was articulated by Thomas Jefferson and first genuinely exercised in the US. So de jure and de facto these European states became religious states, which to date is still the reality for most of them, for de jure a state religion remains, even if de facto very few people practice any religion at all.
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The last and very critical element was that those who were immigrants by choice had a status, whatever the push factor in Europe and the pull factor in the ―New World.‖ This excluded the African-American population which although immigrant, were neither from Europe nor immigrant by choice, and, of course, Native Americans since they were by definition native to the land rather than immigrants. Thus the Unum was not allencompassing and the pluribus not as pluralistic as some have claimed. Immigration was also romanticized, so now it was not a matter of economic betterment but rather it was seen only as an exodus from religious coercion and other persecutions. This fit with the mythology of freedom which was used to justify the creation of the new state. While this freedom was being “universally” publicized, the native religions were being crushed and native peoples were being forced to assimilate. When the state rationalization was devoid of the theological foundations, its new justification was the articulation of the selfpraising ―white man‘s burden.‖ This was a secular, and therefore more devastatingly crass, form of white superiority and it provided a more secure rational grounds for enslaving, decimating and annihilating native people and their cultures4 under the guise of assimilation. In the USA, especially from the late nineteenth till the early twentieth century, many native children were removed from their families and tribes and forced into missionary-run boarding schools for what ironically was called the “Americanization Policy.” The USA was not the only immigrant country which practiced these inhuman acts. Australia handed thousands of Aboriginal children to white families under the government’s Assimilation Policies from 1915 all the way to 1969. These children are called the lost generations (or perhaps more appropriately, the stolen generations), for they lost their culture, languages, religion, etc., and suffered all kinds of humiliation. For the most comprehensive discussion of this aspect of enlightenment rationality and its impact on the black people see, Cornel West, Prophesy Deliverance! An Afro-American Revolutionary Christianity (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1982). 4
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These new immigrate states also generated a new myth of topos, because there was no organic link between the land and the immigrant people. In this story the land was Terra Nullius – i.e., “no man’s land”, or simply “empty land,” unoccupied by anyone. Through this myth they treated the Native Americans or First Nations (ethnoi) of America, as non-people. Their land was occupied and stolen, and whenever they resisted they were called the barbarians who were doing the aggression. They were beaten and put into reservations where their every movement was controlled. Through the Louisiana Purchase of April 30, 1803, the theft by another European nation was legitimized forever. Not only did Europeans have the right to this stolen land but their occupation was given a religious legitimation. This was done through the generation of yet another myth – of the Promised Land, and the migration to it, as part of God’s covenantal design for those who had faced religious persecution in Europe. So God justified the theft of land by God’s chosen people. To work this land, God was also quickly put into service to justify the theft of the slaves’ labour. Such actions were never acknowledged to be the fault of the invading people’s immorality, but were regarded as obviously part of God’s grand design. Such developments also took place in Australia and South Africa, etc., with similar justifications. Further, in order to steal the land from the local population, besides distinguishing themselves from them, a particular brand of Calvinism was also cynically employed to provide a moral and ethical justification for the acts of the invaders. A very dubious and bad understanding of double predestination, quickly made into “manifest destiny,” was generated.5 For this reason the Puritans, though one of the smallest groups of migrant Christians, have been given such a high profile in US history while some others like the Quakers, who were a much larger group of migrants, are barely mentioned. The USA continues to carry out its foreign policy on this basis with the arrogance that it is a light unto the world; a beacon of hope and righteousness. I For a thorough analysis of this position see Robert Bellah, The Broken Covenant (New York: Seabury Press, 1975). 5
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am reminded of the profound words of the Rev. Martin Luther King in this context: [D]on‘t let anyone make you think that God chose America as his divine Messianic force to be — a sort of policeman for the whole world. God has a way of standing before the nations with judgment and it seems that I can hear God saying to America: ―You are too arrogant! If you don‘t change your ways, I will rise up, and break the backbone of your power. And I will place it in the hands of a nation that doesn‘t even know my name. Be still — and know that I am God.‖6
This Calvinist theology and its bad application has also allowed the whites to go on pretending that no wrong was committed in the theft of the land and later even of labor since this was the way God had planned the matter; and that while the whites were chosen to ownership of both, others were chosen to lose their land and labor. If people were killed, maimed, decimated, oppressed, dislocated, etc., this was part of the predestined reality and not because some wrongs were committed. Therefore there is no place for some “politically correct” truth and reconciliation—forget about redemption, restoration, retribution, and forgiveness. Nelson Mandela, the former president of South Africa, concluded his address to the Parliament of Religion in Cape Town 1999 by saying ―There can be no future without forgiveness.‖7 But if there is no confession there can be no forgiveness, and at the same time such a stance completely demeans redemption, restoration and reconciliation and thus the journey towards wholeness. Somewhere along the line all theological inquiry today is confronted with the question of authority. This challenge emerges from both modernist and post-modernist epistemologies. It has become especially critical since the Cartesian assertion of res cogitans (the thinking self) and the Kantian principle that only those who think for themselves, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., April 4, 1967 Riverside Church, NYC, "Why I Oppose the War in Vietnam.‖ Available at http://martinluther-king-jr-why-i-oppose-the-w-mp3-download.kohit.net/_/281686. 7 See, Phil Cousineau, ed., Huston Smith in Conversation with Native Americans on Religious Freedom (Berkeley & Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2006), 2. 6
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unrestrained by any biographical or other interests, deserve the title of being enlightened. Both these positions challenge all external authority, which lies beyond a cognitive or rational self. Trying to articulate this dilemma Hans-Georg Gadamer says that In general the Enlightenment tends to accept no authority and to decide everything before the judgment seat of reason. Thus the written tradition of Scripture, like any other historical document, can claim no absolute validity; the possible truth of tradition depends on the credibility that reason accords it. It is not tradition but reason that constitutes the ultimate source of all authority.8
If Gadamer is right, and I believe he is, then reason located in the self becomes the only authority when claiming truth, especially those truths which are based on faith and faith praxis. In this way the cognitive or rational self has dislocated the privileged status of all external claims (i.e., faith, bible, the church and its ordained ministry, tribes, clans and family). This I believe was central for Vine Deloria who felt that ―… our current spiritual crisis … is based on our overreliance on the mythology of the lone individual – and our undervaluing the tribal belief in religion as an expression of community.‖9 He goes on to say that … the community and the religions that are based on Western institutions are based on the solitary individual – not on the group. So we don‘t really have any communities to bring anything back to. The reason you find people interested in tribal groups is that the community is there. Religion is the expression of the community and its history, and not of individual searches, or of more precise renditions of religious belief.10
Hans-Georg Gadamer, Truth and Method, Second, Revised Edition, translation revised by Joel Weinsheimer and Donald G. Marshall (New York: The Continuum Publishing Company, 2002), 272. 9 See Phil Cousineau, Huston Smith in Conversation, 7 & 8 10 Ibid., 9. Emphasis in original. 8
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Biblical Perspective When I was considering the topic of this symposium, two biblical passages in particular came to mind. The first was the story of Zacchaeus, the corrupt Jewish tax collector who served the empire at the cost of his own People in Luke 19:1-10. If such a corruption of soul was acceptable to him, a little private kleptocratic acquisition on the side was merely a minor sin. What we are reminded by this passage is that no colonialism, no imperialism, no oppression can take place simply as an exogenous element. There is always an endogenous colluder, who benefits the empire at the cost of his own people, and then further becomes powerful by more corrupt practices inside. The 1973 Wounded Knee incident of 71 days and the martyrdom of two people against the local corrupt Zacchaeus are still part of living memory for some of us here. I‘ll say more on this later. What is interesting about the case of the sinner Zacchaeus is the incongruity between his name and his profession. His name in Hebrew means ―pure or righteous‖ (Zacchi, see Nehemiah 7:14) yet he is the chief tax collector and he is rich. He is a traitor both to his nation and to his faith in that he was collecting taxes for the imperial powers and handling currency with idolatrous icons. When one reads the statement about his wealth one realizes the level of corruption (we know this because eventually he is willing to give 50% of his possession to the poor and then to return four times for all his filthy lucre). The other paradox is that he is short, yet Jesus looks up to him, because of his location. Is this not the case for all of us also today? Jesus invites himself in and the fact that Jesus was going to stay in Zacchaeus‘ house is a clear sign that he was a Jew. The problem here is not that he isn‘t a Jew, but rather that he is not a good Jew, because he is selling out his people. What is interesting is that while the people are murmuring about his sin, Zacchaeus seemingly ignores them and doesn‘t answer them directly. Instead he makes a subjunctive confession to Jesus, and then he makes a truly restorative and reconciling promise. Encountering Jesus means coming to understand the character of justice, which has an inbuilt critique of the sheer accumulation of wealth. So if Jesus talks to one and invites himself to one‘s house as a guest, the response cannot be simply NAIITS
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of welcome, but requires a confession and the restitution of giving up half of one‘s wealth to the poor, who remain unspecified unknown. Only once this has been done can reconciliation become possible. At this point Jesus declares, ―Today salvation has come to this house.‖ Now whether this salvation or redemption meant that Jesus went to his house, or this because of his confession and restoration, is irrelevant because according to Luke, and he alone records this incident, they are the same. So his past has been redeemed, his present transformed, and future redirected. The second passage is 2 Cor. 5:19ff, which states that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself not counting their trespasses but giving us the ministry of reconciliation. Living, teaching, and working with white people who talk about missiology all the time, I was wondering who was the ―us‖ of this passage and who the ―them.‖ Who is the ―them‖ whose sins are forgiven and who is the ―us‖ who is called to the ministry of reconciliation and to be the ambassadors of this reconciliation? Not to fall into the arrogance that I am fighting here I always thought that Christology and its reconciling power cannot and will not be understood by those representing and working for the empire. At the same time, like Jesus invited himself to Zacchaeus‘ home, we have to invite ourselves into the household of those who work for and within the empire. That is the reconciling mission of those who are the victims of the empire. Only the victims of the empire can talk about reconciliation and memory. The imperial powers want to forget and co-opt their oppression through sanctificational gymnastics. But remember, reconciliation is a costly proposition. It is not some cheap grace, as Bonheoffer reminds us, of liberal niceness, nor is it the condemnation to damnation of those we don‘t like, as some of our more conservative friends do. It is from the blood and gore of the crosses of history, from the bones and skulls of Golgotha and from the piss and shit surrounding the mangers of history that salvation explodes out into the world. It can never be bought or brought about by the point of the sword. We know this if we are Christians, if we truly understand the theology of the cross. But we don‘t like it because we think of God in terms of successes, in terms of power, because we have NAIITS
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entangled the cross with imperial nationalisms, with the Constantinian Empire. We forget that the cross was an instrument of torture, murder, and political oppression, choosing instead to see it as the upside-down sword of the crusaders. If I‘m right all of us here at this conference are part of the Reformation churches. I wonder what that Reformation would have truly looked like if Luther‘s famous book was not the Babylonian Captivity of the Church but the Constantinian Captivity of the Church. For the Babylonian captivity of the Jews to which he makes a reference in terms of Papo-Caesarism and Caesaro-Papism, was not a voluntary captivity as was the one which the leadership of the Church voluntarily chose. It sold itself to the empire, and to date we are struggling to make the radical gospel written for, by, and in the context of persecuted outcasts and dislocated peoples, fit the needs of empire and power. So we make metaphors literal and literal texts metaphoric to fit our needs. For example, ―It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God‖ (Matt. 19:24) is taken as a metaphor, and poverty itself is metaphorized. All poverty is now being reduced to the ―poor in spirit‖ of Matt. 5:3, rather than the actual degradation and dearth of options which is implied in poverty. So the church, while sleeping with the empire, and promoting the empire, picks up the symbol of poverty as one of the core requirements for its priestly class. They did not come from the poor, and yet poverty was demanded, besides chastity and obedience—so voluntary poverty was an act of obedience. It was required for sanctification. Yet the poor themselves were seen as people who somehow had wronged God, whose prayers God was not listening to. While this was the Catholic side with its charity built into the piety, the Protestants wanted to look for success as the sign of God‘s blessings for faithfulness, and this has led to all kinds of success theology and missiology.11 For the fullest explanation of what I am trying to articulate here, see Max Weber‘s The Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism, with Introduction by Anthony Giddens, Trans., by Talcott Parsons (New York: Charles Scribner‘s Sons, 1958). 11
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This schizophrenia about poverty was largely based on the church‘s inability to deal with the truth that the gospel and the early church emerged among the empire‘s outsiders. We all fall prey to a kind of piety which must pay a dividend of wealth, a kind of righteousness which must result in success. Therefore those who are unsuccessful and not wealthy are, by this doublepredestinarian structure, also unrighteous and sinners. We treat our piety as an investment in God and treat poverty as a punishment from God for our unrighteousness rather than as a product of the sin of those in power, the empires. The problem with this investment theology is that it is thoroughly anti-Christ like. For we see a Christ in Gethsemane praying so hard ―that his sweat became like great drops of blood‖ (Luke 22: 44), but God did not listen to his prayer and he was indeed crucified for our sake. We have Matthew (and also Mark) putting in the mouth of Jesus the heart-wrenching cry of absolute abandonment. It is one of the few places in the whole New Testament where the Aramaic is preserved to emphasize the true nature and the full force of this abandonment: ‗―Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani,‖ that is, ―My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?‖‘ (Matt 27:46 & Mark 15:34). I know this same experience must have been on the tongues and in the hearts of many native people as they were hanging on their crosses, pushed into the Golgothas of the reservation. They too cried out in their tongue: ―Oh Great Spirit, why have you abandoned us?‖ It is out of this abandonment that our theology must come. And it is in this abandonment that God is truly reflected, both as an examplum (example) of what God is, and as sacramentum (sacrament) of where grace resides. Let me finish by quoting Vine Deloria‘s final remarks in a speech to the AAR, ―If I have offended anyone, I wish to apologize, and if there were any of you who feel lonesome because I have not offended you, my apologies to you also.‖12
12
Phil Cousineau, Huston Smith in Conversation, 8.
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THE ROAD OF RECONCILIATION in SWEDEN:
Meeting the Sámi in their own Culture
Gerard F. Willemsen
Preface The position of the Sámi in Scandinavia can in many respects be compared to the First Nations in America. Historical oppression by state and church are similar. Guidelines are proffered in this paper for how the process of reconciliation between the church and the Sámi people can continue and become implemented in the Swedish churches. The Sámi People and the Christian Church The situation of the Sámi in many respects resembles the situation of First Nations in America. Sámi history, especially during the last four centuries, is a history of colonization and of oppression. The Sámi live in the northern parts of Sweden, Norway and Finland as well as in adjacent Russia. The Sámi were reindeer herders as well as hunters and fishers. They are the indigenous people of the area. They long had been in contact with other peoples, but in the 16th century it became important for the Nordic countries to establish their sovereignty over the northern areas. As a part of this, churches were built. Both the State and the State Church tried to force the Sámi into Christianity, and forbade their own religion. Along with that religion, many aspects of the culture were banished. Sometimes Sámi were forced to work for the Scandinavians (as in the silver mines of Nasafjäll in the 17th century – when Sámi were almost enslaved in Sweden).1 Children were in several periods forced to attend nomad schools, taken away from their families for long periods. The pattern is recognized from many other countries.
H. Rydving, The End of Drum-Time: Religious change among the Lule Saami, 1670s-1740s (Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis, Historia Religionum , 12), 1-211. This book provides a good introduction to the religion shift among the Swedish Sámi. 1
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In the early 20th century ―Lap shall be Lap‖ attitudes prevailed in Sweden, meaning that Sámi children were not allowed in ordinary schools and Sámi were not allowed to live in normal houses. According to the flourishing racial biologists, the Sámi were a lower standing people and many women experienced forced sterilization. At the same time, the law did not recognize Sámi who were not reindeer herders, as Sámi. Also, the Sámi language was forbidden in schools, causing the loss of their language. All were to speak Swedish. The forced conversion of the Sámi was not very successful, even if many Sámi went to church as was demanded of them. In order to appease their own divinities, they still performed rituals before going to communion.2 During the 18th century, the clergy started to adopt another strategy, based more on relationships than force. In Sweden, Per Högström advocated this method.3 Still, the missionary work was not very successful. The interest for mission among the Sámi was renewed in churches during the 19th century, but mission was not thought of as contextual. Mostly, the Sámi culture was regarded as inferior and their world view was not understood by the missionaries.4 No attempts were made to give the Gospel a place within Sámi culture. Missionary organizations started ―mission schools‖ for Sámi children, where Christianity in a Swedish form as well as reading, writing, etcetera, were taught. During the 20th century, assimilation became stronger. Sámi cultural elements were banned from church, especially through the influence of the Laestanianistic movement. Lars Levi Laestadius was in the centre of a revival, especially among Sámi and Finnish people. Being half Sámi himself, he could relate to their way of life. But he banned the Sámi chant (yoik) and the drum. Later, Laestadianism found it difficult to accept Sámi ways of expressing their faith. Only quite recently are some Rydving, The End of Drum-Time , 127 ff describes a communion-like ritual performed by Sámi in the 18th century. 3 P. Högström, Beskrifning öfwer Sveriges Lapmarker (Umeå: Två Förläggare, (1747)1980). This is the most important source from this period in Sweden. 4 See Gerard Willemsen, Svenska Missionsförbundets mission bland samerna 1880-1892 (Tro och Liv , 60 (1), 2001), 12-23, esp. 18ff. 2
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churches (especially the Church of Sweden as well as the Church of Norway, and the Mission Covenant Church of Sweden) starting to actively support Sámi church life. Theological Basis of Injustice When Christianity came to the Sámi area it came with the Swedish/Norwegian state churches. Those churches were acting as part of the colonizing states and allied with them. Theology at that time was biased through the alliance with the secular state as well as through the developing European culture. The clergy failed to see any value in the Sámi spiritual beliefs.5 There was a tendency to emphasize industrialism—western industrialism built on production and knowledge. Theologians emphasized subduing the Earth rather than the biblical concept of stewardship. A theology of creation was almost non-existent, and respect for creation, which the Sámi and many other indigenous peoples had, and which many times is more in accordance with the Bible than western capitalistic views, was not at all acknowledged. Emphasis on creation theology and on stewardship became an issue in western theology with Jürgen Moltmann‘s work in the eighties. Moltmann made clear that human lordship over creation is only biblical insofar as humankind is the imago Dei, and is quite something else than subjecting and exhausting the earth and its resources for the sake of nourishment and economical development.6 Western christianity has demonstated that it could not handle the responsibility given to mankind in 1 Gen 1:28, but used that verse as an excuse for exploiting creation, including fellow humans, to their own advantage.7
See Rydving, The End of Drum-Time,78 ff. Important sources (all in Swedish) include Högström, Beskrifning öfwer Sveriges Lapmarker, chapter 11 ; S. Rheen Om Lapparnes leverne (Acta Regiae Societatis Skytteanae, (1671), 1983), 27 See Rydving for other sources. 6 J. Moltmann, God in Creation: an ecological doctrine of creation (London: SCM,1985). See esp. page 224 f. 7 Among others the First Nations theologian Vine Deloria has stressed how western culture differs from indigenous culture in this. (Vine Deloria, God is Red (Colorado: Fulcrum Publishing, 2003), 83 ff). Unlike him, I do see this as a fault of western society misinterpreting Scripture, and not of Christianity in itself. 5
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During the 19th century, the fundaments of racial biology were laid in Sweden. In 1922, Sweden was the first country in the world to establish a state institute for racial biology, and the institute existed until 1958, when its name changed to Institute of Medical Genetics. Swedish researchers believed they had the means of classifying human races from ―higher‖ to ―lower‖. White people, and especially white Nordic people, were considered to be highest, and the Sámi were considered to be lowest. The clergy sought to confirm these theories in the Bible. They helped authorities to collect Sámi skulls for their research by plundering Sámi graves, mainly during the 19th century. For example, the above mentioned Lutheran priest Laestadius, who was working among the Sámi, aided the so-called scientists to find Sámi bones.8 The racial theories were a factor behind the ―Lap-shall-be-Lap‖ principle in education. The Sámi were considered unable to reach as high a civilization level as the Swedish. In 1913, it was decided that the nomadic Sámi children should be educated in a nomadic environment, living in Sámi huts and not getting used to the comforts of civilized life. ―Let them not sip from the cup of civilization (…) this will anyhow just be a sipping, but this has never been and will never be of any blessing. Lap shall be Lap‖ wrote Vitalis Karnell. He was a Lutheran priest in Karesuando and one of the experts behind the school reform. Not before 1962 did the compulsory nomad schools become voluntary. In summation, it can be said that the church, especially the Lutheran State Church (Church of Sweden), has caused the Sámi much suffering. The Christ the Sámi met through the Christians colonizers was many times over a cruel and judging Christ, not the loving Son who would give all for the people. Over the centuries the State Church has taken an active part in oppression and cultural suppression. The emerging free churches at the end of the 19th century seemed to think in much the same way. Of course they wanted to preach the gospel to the Sámi, but without understanding of Sámi culture either. For Gunilla Edbohm: Samiskt kulturarv i samlingar in Archaeological Report (Ájtte: Swedish Mountain and Sámi Museum, Jokkmokk, 2005:1), 8. 8
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example, one of the first missionaries from the Mission Covenant Church, K. Gustafsson, was very positive about the special mission schools, but he complained that the Sámi parents did not teach the children anything before sending them to school at 12 years of age. Anything children had learned within their own culture held no value for him.9 Biblical Basis of Reconciliation Reconciliation is at the very heart of the Christian faith. We know that the relationship between humankind and its Creator has become disturbed through the disobedience of humans (Gen 3). Original sin changed the world forever. Reconciliation between God and humankind was achieved through the incarnation of Christ, taking on our burden of sin, culminating at the cross. On the cross, the powers of evil were besieged and humankind was reconciled to God. God‘s mission to the world is reconciling the world with himself. The establishment of the Kingdom of God, the eternal Sabbath, is the crown of creation. The redemption of creation by Christ opens the future towards this eschatological Sabbath. This incarnational reconciliation must be the source of our search for reconciliation on the interhuman plane. As the church of Christ we are called to be an agent of reconciliation. It means that liturgy and theology as well as the practice of life must be kept together. The prophets have often criticized Israel furiously for keeping the liturgy, the outer forms of the religion, while living their lives with injustice. Amos‘ critique of Israel was harsh, for they ―turn justice into bitterness and cast righteousness to the ground . . . you oppress the righteous and take bribes, and you deprive the poor of justice in the courts.‖10 The religious system may be intact, but God desires justice. God says through Isaiah: ―Your incense is detestable for Me; New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations – I cannot bear your evil assemblies.‖ Rather, He says: ―Seek justice, encourage the oppressed, defend the cause of the Gustafsson wrote in an unpublished report on the start of the Mission Covenant Church of Vilhelmina, cited by Willemsen, Svenska Missionsförbundets mission bland samerna , 19. 10 Amos 5:7, 12; see the whole of chapters 4 and 5. 9
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fatherless, plead the case of the widow.‖11 It means that the church is called to be with the weak and with the oppressed, to resist the temptation to take dominion. The Lord Jesus was offered power by both man and Satan, but he never fell for that as humans did. Rather, he was with the sick, with the poor, with the ones despised by society. The incarnation of Christ in order to bring reconciliation and to proclaim the Kingdom of God also provides a model for the church. The church has to incarnate into the life and culture of the people. This means one thing for a church in Sweden, quite another for a church among Sámi, and yet another for a church in the mountains of China. Reconciliation also means equality before God. All humans are affected by sin; all are in the same need of reconciliation; and all stand in the same position before the holiness of God. Therefore, the western interpretation of Christianity cannot prevail above the Sámi, the Lisu,12 the Lakota or any other indigenous interpretation. An example from the Sámi context is the troubling issue of repatriation of Sámi skulls, stored in institutions but claimed by the Sámi for burial. Reconciliation in the Churches in Sweden The Swedish and Norwegian Lutheran churches have formally apologized for their role in the oppression of the Sámi people. This is of course good, but reconciliation must go further. Now the task of churches is incarnating into Sámi life, that is, becoming a Sámi church. The first steps have been taken by two main churches in Sweden, Norway and Finland—the Lutheran and the Mission Covenant churches. But the practice still falls behind the intentions. The demands from the Karasjok Declaration from 1998 have only started to be implemented in Scandinavia. This declaration was the result of a meeting of some fifty indigenous Christians in association with the World Council of Churches in the Sámi village of Karasjok, Norway. It Is. 1:11, 17. The Lisu are an indigenous people living in Yunnan, China. During 2005 and 2006 contacts were established between Sámi Christians in Sweden and the Lisu churches in Nujiang. 11 12
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demands churches to respect and support indigenous peoples in several ways including support in societal related issues, establishing indigenous meeting places, and the return of land taken by churches.13 The church incarnating into the life of the Sámi people means that a Sámi church must be developed. Today, churches are far too often only Swedish churches, even if some Sámi service may be held now and then. Only in one place (Kiruna) has the Mission Covenant Church started to have Sámi meetings as often as once a month. More places will follow, we hope. There are almost no Sámi pastors, but efforts are being made to identify Sámi who are willing to become pastors and to facilitate them to follow a calling from the Lord. Not only does reconciliation imply that the development of a Sámi church be facilitated, it also implies that a Sámi theology must be developed based on Sámi values and understandings of the world. We are only starting this task. We are now planning meetings at both grass root and interdenominational level. The last thing we should do is to split the Sámi Christians along the lines we have been splitting the western church. In developing Sámi theology we need to find key metaphors from their traditional life. This can have implications for how the meeting place is chosen, as well as liturgical forms and preaching style. Sitting in a circle is important, as is narrative preaching, perhaps in dialogue form. Meeting in a context reminiscent of the traditional Sámi goađi or lavvu (the former being a traditional circular hut, the latter a kind of tipi-like tent) facilitates Sámi spirituality. Another example is the use of the traditional Sámi chant, yoik, in worship. I remember one service started with a traditional South Sámi yoik, which tells the leader-reindeer to go and gather the herd. This yoik was highly appreciated by the people and much more appropriate than ringing a church bell. Yoik is often regarded as The Karasjok Declaration should not be confused with the Karasjok Statement, made by a meeting organised by the Lutheran World Federation on indigenous issues 2006. That statement asks for facilitation of the development of indigenous theology. 13
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―pagan‖ and as belonging to shamanism. Yoik has however never been exclusively connected to a certain religious context, but can be about many different things. It has always been a way of expressing feelings and of communicating. The yoik expert Krister Stoor has expressed it as a way of remembering. The latter aspect is important. In traditional Sámi culture, the dead are in a sense alive as long as they are remembered, and they are remembered through yoik. Remembrance is a central theme in Christian life. Yoik could be a means of remembrance even in the church.14 Today, some Sámi are yoiking to the honor of Christ, and should be encouraged. We must also recognize that a Sámi theology is not only good for the Sámi, but that it can enrich the whole church, as other theologies also can be valuable for the Sámi. Reconciliation does not only mean giving Sámi the freedom to do church in their own way; it also means allowing them to influence the Scandinavian church as a whole. Areas where Sámi theology can contribute are, for example, creation theology and ecological theology. Interest in creation theology is increasing, and here the traditional values of the Sámi can provide important insights. We already noted creation theology has been poorly developed in western theology until quite recently. Here the Sámi as well as First Nations churches could make a valuable contribution to the world wide church. It should be a task for the church to encourage indigenous theologians. Another area where Sámi theology can enrich the church is Sámi nomadic life as a metaphor for helping to understand aspects of Old Testament theology and of Christian life. There are many similarities between the sacred aspects of traditional life and religious aspects of old Israel especially during the time of the patriarchs. Sacred places in nature (mountains, stones) serve as one example. Instead of regarding all traditional Sámi spiritual life as pagan, it can be used to bring understanding about certain aspects of spirituality in a nomadic or semi-nomadic society as See Gerard Willemsen, ―Remembering the Dead in Sámi Culture,‖ First Peoples Theology Journal, n.d. 14
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in the days of Abraham. Nomadic or semi-nomadic people can give a unique perspective founded in their own experience. Nomadism can also serve as a metaphor of Christian life. The experience of frequently having to leave a dwelling place to travel on to another is difficult to imagine for sedentary people, but an important aspect of Christian life. The popularity of pilgrimage may have to do with that: people seek to experience what it means to be ―on the way‖ to a place where pastures hopefully are good. In a spiritual sense Christians are a people on the way to another dwelling place. To be a people on the way has consequences: how to relate to the place where I am now, to belongings, and to things to carry along. People acquainted with nomadic life have a unique understanding of these concepts. Reconciliation further implies that the church supports the Sámi in their struggle for justice in society, acknowledging that their conceptions of justice must be taken into account. This means giving support to the Sámi struggle for land and water rights and for autonomy in exercising those rights. Very often the church finds it difficult to openly support this struggle. To take one example, when the Swedish government asked for opinions concerning a possible future ratification of ILO 169, an important resolution concerning rights to land and water, the Lutheran Church (then still State Church) did not support ratification. We mentioned above the many Sámi skeletal remains taken by authorities. Many of those remains are in different museums and institutions. In 2007, the Sámi Parliament in Sweden demanded that these be returned to their places of origin and reburied. Since those remains were stolen against the will of the people it seems self-evident that the church should support such a process. The Lutheran Church is willing to cooperate in reburial. The Annual Conference of Mission Covenant Church has publicly declared support and asked the Swedish government and institutions to comply. Practical things like this are important to give the reconciliation process credibility. Support for the struggle for survival of Sámi languages is also necessary. In this the churches could play an active role by using the language in all aspects of church life, an important NAIITS
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contribution to decolonization. However, this is not an simple matter, partly because several Sámi languages sometimes exist in the same area since the State moved people by force to new lands during the early 20th century. Also, many Sámi have lost their language because of state policies, which contributed to parents not teaching their children their mother tongue. We must not give up. It is important to put our resources into translation of the Scripture, texts, and songs. Within a few years the complete Bible will be available in North Sámi, but as for the other Sámi languages we have only parts of the Bible available. Today, many young people want to use their own language and dress in Sámi traditional clothing. Yes, we face a large task. Conclusion True reconciliation between the church and the Sámi can only be reached if the church is fully willing to recognize that Sámi Christians are capable of developing and forming their own church, without being controlled. The church must be willing to facilitate this process by making resources available. The church also must make efforts to make (non-Sámi) church membership recognize the importance of this. In a few brief points the path toward wholeness looks like this. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
recognizing the history of oppression and colonization by the church; apologizing for those things; creating structures for the development of a self-governing Sámi church; making resources available for the development of a Sámi church (money, translation, education, theological resources); supporting the Sámi people in their quest for justice; and considering Sámi viewpoints.
The vision is to have a Sámi church which lives within its own cultural setting, which is contributing to and enriching the whole church in Scandinavia and worldwide—a church unique, yet one with the rest of the Body of Christ. We are moving toward that vision.
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HE MUST INCREASE1 David Bird
Introduction It was in March of 1990 when I fully committed myself to following Christ and embarked on a journey of faith that is now the foundation for all that I believe and all I do within the community I serve. I was 23 years old at the time and very much the product my generation and culture. Culture did not solely consist of the traditional ways of the Cree or Saulteaux. It was largely defined by the dysfunction of a Native family and a community dealing with a legacy of missionaries, Indian agents, two world wars, segregation, residential schools, the Indian Act, the reserve system, abuse, and a whole lot of other factors. Fear, superstition, abuse, poverty, and feelings of inadequacy were friends of mine, as with anyone growing up in a First Nations family in Southern Saskatchewan. I became heavily involved in a Full Gospel/Pentecostal ministry in downtown Regina. Within three months I was leading Bible studies, services and street ministry projects. One year into my walk, I became the Associate Pastor and have been in the ministry in some form ever since. I brought all my dysfunction to that first ministry, but dysfunction was welcomed with open arms. Fear, superstition, abuse, and feelings of inadequacy were talked about frequently in spite of the fact that we were within the Spirit-filled, Bible believing, uncompromising, victorious First Nations Pentecostal church. People were either preaching about dysfunction, testifying about it and/or leading the ministry from its perverse and hidden influence—but it was alright because after all we were all ―covered by the blood‖. So, I belonged to a dysfunctional church practicing a dysfunctional faith that was led by dysfunctional people, who were only slightly less dysfunctional than many First Nations people. Looking back, I take solace only in the fact that at least we were preaching Christ. Although I greatly appreciate the 1
John 3:30
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ministry where I began my spiritual journey, I came to a sad self-realization in 1999. I stepped down from the pastorate. After a year of reflection, but not rest, I made some painfully honest observations. The form of faith I had so relied upon to be holy, healthy, and joyful was sorely lacking and too simplistic, at least for me, to provide any concrete answers on how to achieve actual holiness and inner peace. I came to realize our churches could not really define what we and the Bible meant by ―be ye holy, for I am holy.‖2 It wasn‘t until I started dealing with my own ―mess‖ that I realized we could be so much more effective. Honestly, the church world ―sucks‖ at effectively and creatively developing programs to assist individuals, families, and communities in achieving their goals, answering real questions or facilitating justice, prosperity, and true healing for First Nations people. My quest for more effective methodologies and agents of change directed me towards First Nations traditional beliefs, opening my eyes to a movement that I believe is being orchestrated by God. This has also lead to reflection on holiness with an honest desire to better understand and know God‘s heart on the matter. My search lead to developing a healing/wholeness model that I have used in various settings, the most notable being the Regina First Nations Alliance Church Peepeekisis Healing centre, and Aboriginal Family Services Mentoring Program. I also came to identify with something within the person and story of John the Baptist (Elijah3). Perhaps others can relate because contextualized First Nations Christianity is truly a ―voice in the wilderness.‖ It is not being heard by many at the moment, but is preparing our people and North America to receive Jesus. John‘s story, my story, and our story all appear to be intertwined in a theological and spiritual movement that God is leading in our generation. It is the lessons I learned from John the Baptist (Elijah) that gave rise to the title of this presentation.
2 3
1 Peter 1:16 (KJV). John is ―the Elijah who was to come‖ according to Jesus (Matt 11:14).
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In all humility,4 it is my intention to address four key areas regarding the topics of contextualization, inclusion, and holistic healing related to Wholeness/Holiness from a spirituality that has been influenced by Evangelical Christianity and First Nations thinking. The first three parts of this presentation discuss the topic of contextualization. Although the realities of culture and Christian responses to culture have been addressed at length in various forums and lectures, it is necessary to highlight important aspects. The forth part introduces a practical application of Native Christian theology which has been used in various settings to facilitate and foster an environment that assists a person to achieve Wholeness /Holiness. The four parts of this presentation are: 1. A Theological Consideration regarding Restoration of Culture 2. The Voice of One Crying in the Wilderness—Realities regarding Inclusion of Culture 3. Make Straight the Path—Christian Responses towards the Restoration of Culture 4. He Must Increase—A Practical Model for Growth towards Wholeness. A Theological Consideration regarding Restoration of Culture Historical Narratives from the Old Testament The Old Testament provides us with a classic example of the oppression of a particular people, Israel, and the renewal and restoration5 of that people. Israel‘s example presents a I do not often quote from sources. I‘m not trying to take ownership of every thought as my own, nor am I trying to plagiarize. I acknowledge the influences of a long list of authors, counsellors, ministers, elders, friends, and family. In some ways, I am relying on a beautiful aspect of First Nations ways and thought—oral tradition. Oral tradition is a wonderful source of wisdom and guidance which it prevents you from taking ownership, because thoughts, ideas and teachings belong to the collective. I have noticed elders rarely quote from a book or person because they are speaking from the heart. I only hope that my words, whether written or spoken, will be seen in the same manner. 5 I use the word restoration in a broader sense to mean the renewal of the nation, but also to mean freedom from oppressors and freedom to practice their ways. 4
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theological framework that can provide perspective for the issue of restoration in and amongst First Nations people. Israel repeatedly suffered the indignity of being overtaken by various foreign peoples and being forced to learn the ways of the oppressors. In the Old Testament narratives Israel is overtaken and/or heavily influenced by the Egyptians, Philistines, Midianites, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, and Greeks. In God‘s infinite wisdom this served many purposes. Israel finds freedom and restoration6 upon returning to the Law and the Lord and begins to re-apply faith in new circumstances. Traditional ways are adapted to fit within the new context, whether in captivity or in the homeland, under the oppression of a foreign ruler. The Book of Daniel provides a clear example of contextualization and adaptability of the Jewish faith.7 The restoration and contextualization of the ways of Israel seem to follow this basic pattern: Oppression/Captivity – A number of differing events cause Israel to be placed in this condition. Israel is then forced to contend with and respond to the beliefs, faith, and teachings of the oppressor and captor. Call to or Renewal of Faith/Ways/Culture – A herald, a prophet, a judge, or deliverer rises up and emphasizes a return to the traditional ways, usually the Law, but ultimately a return to relationship with God. Sometimes divine intervention occurs at the same time. In the call to renewal, two individuals stand out, Moses and Elijah. Malachi the prophet makes the statement that Elijah will return before the day of the LORD, a fact that becomes very significant in the person of John the Baptist. Deliverance/Divine Intervention – At some point in time after a period of oppression and when the people have called upon God, their deliverance takes place. God hears, responds and intervenes in some dramatic fashion and the people are set free. Relationship with God is re-established and the nation is at peace again.
Except in the Egyptian case, when the Israelites have their traditions become better defined. 7 Daniel and his companions learn the ways of the Babylonians and are symbols of the nation having to learn the ways of a foreign oppressor. 6
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Historical Narrative from the New Testament In the New Testament Israel has to endure one nation—the oppressive Roman government that has replaced the Greeks as the rulers of the ‗world.‘ The people had been practicing their faith in the midst of political turmoil, corruption, and oppression. This period is reminiscent of their Egyptian captivity. In spite of their prayers and practice, they remain under oppression awaiting their deliverance. It is at this point when John the Baptist (Elijah) appears and proclaims a message of repentance and renewal. John also prepares the way for Jesus who will bring true restoration and holiness to the nations and the world. The pattern of Oppression/Renewal/Deliverance in the Old Testament fits in the New Testament narrative. However, renewal and deliverance takes on a totally different meaning. Renewal becomes a renewal of individual life and deliverance from sinful tendencies, evil spirits, dysfunction, fear, and selfdestructive patterns, leaving inner peace, joyfulness, holiness, and relationship with the Father of All. Our Generation The previous examples are presented as a possible pattern to provide a theological explanation for what is taking place in First Nations. The following is my perception of how this pattern is unfolding in our generation: Oppression/Captivity - First Nations ways have been oppressed and suppressed by foreign rules and rulers for centuries. The people have been influenced and forced to learn the ways, faiths, and teachings of the dominant culture. Renewal of Ways – In our prayers for revival/renewal the answer our generation is receiving is a resurgence of First Nations traditional teachings, slightly modified to fit the modern context having been influenced by the foreign set of beliefs. This renewal/revival has taken the place of the one dynamic individual or herald that usually stands out and calls the people back to God. It serves as the prophet—the John the Baptist, the Elijah—of our generation, preparing the way for First Nations people, possibly North America as a whole, to establish a healthy relationship with God, the Father of All. Restoration of Ceremony - A large part of a renewal of faith is the renewal of ceremony. For Israel a renewal of faith always incorporated a renewal of their ceremonies. Essentially their
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return to ceremony is a return to the Laws and the practice of those laws as defined in the Pentateuch. Over the past twenty five years First Nations societies have seen a dramatic increase in ceremonial and cultural activities being practiced and relearned. This spiritual activity is something that needs to be given proper attention. It is speaking a message to our generation, pointing towards the next stage in the pattern. Deliverance/Divine Intervention – The call to restore/renew First Nations ceremony and traditional beliefs is preparing the people for a divine intervention. The renewal of First Nations traditions is ―making straight‖8 the way for the heart, soul, spirit, and mind of the First Nations people to accept and establish relationship with Jesus Christ and with the Father of All. The First Nations spiritual environment is being reestablished in order that a more effective and healthier church (although I hesitate to use the word due to misconceptions) environment in which a First Nations person can fulfill the Great Commission.
Further to this, the re-emergence of First Nations traditional beliefs and practices can be the context which brings about the greater needs and aspirations of the people – justice, prosperity, peace, healing, and mutual interdependence with non-Native society. First Nations can then fully participate and influence government, the economy, and social structure. Then we can truly say ―we are free from our oppressor.‖ The church has a responsibility and mandate to facilitate the First Nations people, if only to repair the damage it caused. Thankfully it does not have to do it alone. God, the Father of All, his Son Jesus and the Holy Spirit are the real forces behind the change. A Consideration Regarding the Restoration of Culture Elijah and John the Baptist offer a helpful theological perspective to the restoration of faith/ways/culture. They were heralds who passionately cried out for a return to faith. Can we suggest that the restoration of culture and traditions are in the spirit of Elijah and John the Baptist and that the restoration of Native culture and traditions is bringing and/or sending a Holy Spirit inspired message to First Nations people and to North America? These two messengers prepared the way for the 8
Isaiah 40:3
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coming of Jesus. Working from that framework, can a credible comparison be made that is applicable to our current situation? Is the rise of Native traditions a God inspired way to prepare the hearts of an oppressed people to receive Jesus and to live in wholeness and restoration? The Voice of One Crying in the Wilderness—Realities Regarding the Inclusion of Culture Are voices crying in the wilderness ever heard? The rise of traditional ways is marking a move of the Father of All amongst First Nations peoples. As I have suggested, the traditional ways are the ―voice of one crying in the wilderness‖ saying ―be ready for Jesus.‖ Are we hearing the message? Following are my observations and interpretations of events happening in Western Canada that support my interpretive proposal. Public Restoration/Re-learning of the Ways In the past twenty-five years there has been a steady increase in people practicing and learning traditions. Ceremonies, lodges, elders and symbols have increased dramatically. It is commonly acknowledged that First Nations traditions are an acceptable and perhaps a better received form of belief for the First Nations person. Traditional ways are now generally accepted as being beneficial for holistic health and for success. It is a regular practice to incorporate elements of traditional ways and teachings into every aspect of society. Government, education, health, economics are all impacted in one form or another. In non-Native society, there is an ever increasing acknowledgment that traditional ways are meaningful and helpful, especially when institutions are actively engaging First Nations people. A concentrated effort is being made by government and institutions to be sensitive and aware. In fact in some non-Native settings and institutions the only form of faith permitted to be expressed publicly is the First Nations traditional beliefs. Times and seasons for cultural and spiritual activities have been developed. An unwritten calendar has emerged for the practice of cultural activities.9 These have been contextualized to fit This situation reflects positively upon and encourages or strengthens the value of oral tradition. 9
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within the modern context. Anyone involved in the traditional ways knows the seasons for certain activities such as powwows, ceremonies, sun-dances, round-dances, lodges, feasts, traditional fasts, medicine walks, culture camps, and gathering of medicinal plants. The renewal of these traditional ways in Western Canada has created an unprecedented opportunity for elders and practitioners of ceremonies and traditions. The ways are being developed and contextualized to fit into various models, programs, and institutions contributing to personal healing and communal healing. Make Straight the Path—Christian Responses to Restoration of Culture The model I use has been heavily influenced by the traditional ways of the Cree and Saulteaux. I present it as an example of how traditional ways can be and have been incorporated into healing programs. In the summer of 2002, I began hosting seminars and forums to educate ministries in Regina and to emphasize the need for a more effective way to reach First Nations with the gospel in order to facilitate true healing. I have encountered three basic categories of reactions by Christians to First Nations traditions and ceremonies. 1. Regarded as evil by some. There is a large and influential contingent opposed to First Nations traditions and culture, regarding them as pure evil. They view the traditions as inspired or perverted by the devil. They generally use biblically based arguments, but opinions often are based on hearsay or are poorly researched and founded upon superstition and/or poor theology. In other cases the argument against contextualizing is rooted in a person‘s firsthand experience with traditional ways. That voice does need to be heard and respected. Some concerns are valid and need to be adequately addressed. Within the full range of this category is a large and influential contingent of First Nations led ministries and ministers that shun or speak against the traditions, often creating divisions. 2. Some Ministries are beginning exploration to better understand traditional ways. There are ministries that see value in learning or trying to understand First Nations traditional practice for one of three reasons: (i) Ammunition: These take a close-minded view, but see a need to explore the traditional ways to equip themselves to NAIITS
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engage in an apologetical and/or theological debate against those who favour inclusion of traditional ways into Christian worship. (ii) Economic/Business Considerations: For others it makes for good business practice. In Western Canada, it makes sense to incorporate traditional thought or symbols. The First Nations population is growing rapidly and are becoming a political and economic force, exercising leadership in all areas of society. Learning and exploring First Nations traditions is the right thing to do from a purely economic and business standpoint. Sadly, it is hard to know if these ministries have a heart for First Nations people. (iii) Genuine Concern and Willingness to learn: Others have a genuine concern for First Nations and a willingness to learn. These ministries are actively seeking creative ways to incorporate traditions into their local settings. This group is steadily growing in number and in their knowledge of First Nations. An additional area of concern is misrepresentation. Some ministries may be using or contextualizing Native traditions and symbols in a way that misrepresents the original form and function. Examples include taking the colours in the circle and comparing them to the wordless Bible, or imposing a church‘s theological belief upon a First Nations tradition to fit their statement of faith, or turning a male-only into a co-ed ceremony. 3. Handful of ministries leading a theological revolution It is this third category of response that I find to be the most encouraging, although progress is at different rates in different areas. One thing is certain; there are a number of ministries and individuals who are leading a theological revolution through the incorporation of Native theology and traditions. These men and women have developed academic and theological understanding to support their views. They are faced with many challenges but they continue to push forward. These leaders are gathering momentum and doors are opening across North America to vocalize beliefs and present their theological understanding. This is due to a number of reasons: the people involved are well spoken and well educated; they have a strong dedication and feel a deep sense of purpose to build a church that is for, rather than against, First Nations people; humility is a strong point in their character; resources are being supplied to facilitate the movement; and, most importantly, the Father of All, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit is directing it. NAIITS
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Ten Common Questions/Concerns I have walked in all three of the categories above at one time or another. My journey from the tradition-fearing Native Pentecostal minister to genuine explorer and eventually to becoming a Native theological voice in the wilderness has given me some perspective on the issues. With this in mind, I present ten questions and concerns with contextualization of First Nations traditions consistently asked or raised. I provide a brief response in four points: 1.
Is it necessary? Why do I need it? This is the number one question at every seminar and is asked in many different ways. For example, since Jesus' blood and sacrifice is what brings cleansing to my life, why do I need sweetgrass or a sweatlodge? 2. I am concerned about the pipe, the sweatlodge, tobacco, sweetgrass, or any other Native tradition being brought into the church. Is it right to mix Native traditions and Christianity? 3. Doesn't the Bible tell us that our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and thus we shouldn't put harmful things in our body, like tobacco? [1 Corinthians 3:16-17 and 6:19-20]. 4. Where do I ―draw the line‖? I like some things like the dancing and drums, but not other things, such as pipes and sweatlodge. 5. What if I go into a ceremony and a "bad spirit" comes on me? Can a bad spirit come on me and will I need deliverance later? 6. I don't understand the significance and I am apprehensive or fearful of Native symbols, songs, protocol, and ceremonies. Do I need to be afraid of these things? 7. Native people who lack understanding of the traditional aspects of their people will ask how to go about learning traditional ways or will make comments like ―I was never brought up this way‖, or ―my culture was alcohol, abuse and dysfunction.‖ 8. Do Native people worship or call upon many gods/spirits? Do they talk to evil spirits, animal spirits, or spirit guides? 9. Should I participate in a Native practice that causes my brother to stumble? What about the weaker brother? 10. Why don‘t you see examples of traditional people living a victorious life or living in freedom?
A Response to the Concerns At the heart of these ten questions and concerns are four issues: theology or doctrine, a personal struggle with God, personal issues, or fear of people. 1. Theology/Doctrine The concerns generally come out of the believer‘s understanding of the Bible and Christian faith. There is a wrong assumption of NAIITS
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a pure type of Christianity, already in existence, or one that we can somehow achieve. Native traditions and ideas would taint this pure Christianity. These questions are asking if the Native practices are right or wrong; however it seems that few evaluate or question the Euro-centrality of the church—and the syncretistic practices of hundreds of years are conveniently overlooked. Native tradition for the most part is monotheistic in belief, a belief in only one God/Creator. However, some traditional people call or rely upon spirits or spirit helpers to give guidance and strength. But does that mean that you cannot invite the Holy Spirit into a ceremony? The ceremonies /traditions in some instances may need to be practiced in different locations,10 but I don‘t believe they need to be changed. The focus of any spiritual practice has to be on the relationship of God/Creator, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit with His people. Further to this, concerns arise, at times, from a person who believes that his or her personal theology and doctrines are so proven that they cannot possibly be challenged or shaped by new perspectives. The comments then become an imposition of Christian doctrine onto the traditional practice or belief. 2. Personal struggle with God The concerns are sometimes asking, ―Would God be pleased?‖ I have met a lot of Christians who have a Christianity based on fear. I don‘t recommend people blindly go into ceremonies, where they do not trust the leader or have no idea about what is going on. Of course, I would say that about church also. It is unfortunate that there are not many followers of Jesus leading Native ceremonies, so if a person is genuinely seeking for answers then they may have to rely on non-Christian elders. It‘s not such a bad thing to be taught by a non-Christian elder, provided that the elder is someone who is trustworthy. Each individual has their own limits and I never recommend people do something they are not comfortable doing, but just because one person is not comfortable with something it doesn‘t mean we all have to be uncomfortable with it. 3. Personal Issues The strength of Christianity is that it offers hope to anyone in need. However its strength is sometimes its weakness. I mean outside of the church building, in a more natural setting like the mountains or prairies. 10
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Christianity attracts dysfunctional people who then become dysfunctional leaders. Christianity attracts people who have problems with relationships, self-control issues or have a poor self-concept. They lack confidence in their abilities and even more damaging they lack confidence in God‘s abilities. Their questions sometimes speak of their own personal fears, such as their fear of rejection, fear of failure, and fear of the unknown. 4. Fear of People I think it is sad that a whole generation of Native people have not been taught about or given the freedom to practice their tribe‘s or family‘s traditional practices. The decision on whether or not traditional practices were of value was made for them by missionaries, churches, and Indian agents—who for the most part saw no value in them. Fear is born out of ignorance and misunderstanding. Fear of rejection, fear of the unknown, fear of failure and fear of abandonment are some of the common fears. A lot of the confusion, misunderstanding, and rejection around this topic are motivated by fear and not by sound reason. Fear causes a person to close up their understanding and reasoning ability, "to put up walls". Our defence mechanism is either to fight or flee. The dynamic that takes place in the church is to fight against it or to close the door and reject it. God-centred spirituality vs. Culture-centred spirituality I strongly promote, from a Christian perspective, First Nations culture and traditions, but it is not a promotion of culture to the point where culture and tradition takes the place of God. I don‘t think Jesus would be or is displeased when we worship him and pray to the Father in a traditional ceremony. To have a truly healthy and effective spirituality Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the Father of All has to be the focal point. Culture and tradition is a tool that helps to teach us about God/Creator and is to be used to improve our relationship with God. With God/Jesus as the focal point of any tradition, practice or ceremony, then the possibility of the traditional practice harming the worshipper is minimized if not eliminated. We are still responsible to discern the Holy Spirit‘s voice. Tradition when it is misused and misinterpreted allows for animals, elements, or ceremonies to be in control. Creation and ceremony becomes our spiritual guide, and thus our God. When culture, traditions, or objects are in control or are given control, NAIITS
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then an abnormal spirituality is created that is based upon superstition and fear. I don‘t think God meant for any tradition or ceremony to be in control of our spirituality. True spirituality is found when an individual meets the Father in a setting or place that the Spirit has arranged. So with that in mind I feel that every believer, when in a ceremony or service, needs to ask himself or herself the following questions, ―Who is in control here? Is it me? Is it the leader? Is it the practice, elements or structure of the ceremony/service? Or is it God?‖ Two important considerations for leaders Although I am in favour of practicing Christianity in a purely First Nations setting, and I have beliefs and answers to the following questions, there are deeper theological considerations that need to be asked of the collective. These should be addressed by all those involved in practicing Christianity in a First Nations manner. To what extent should First Nations traditions be incorporated into the present church context and the life of the individual follower of Christ? Are their limits that need to be set? If traditional ways have been incorporated into a local ministry, to what extent should a non-Native person participate in Native traditional ways?
He Must Increase—Practical Model for Growth towards Wholeness The following is the outline of a practical model that I have developed and used over a period of ten years. It incorporates elements of Christian thought, First Nations tradition, and counselling techniques that I have had the privilege of learning and observing. I present it in this forum to demonstrate a practical application of how a ministry or an organization can incorporate Christianity and First Nations traditional ways into a model that brings about God‘s greater purpose for our life. First, a word on holiness. Word research has led me to believe that holiness and wholeness are essentially the same word. Holiness = whol/e/ness. Both words are also related to health and healing. So when the Bible tells us ―to be ye holy, for I am holy‖ we are essentially being told by God ‗to be whole, like He is whole‘. I take this to mean that we are to be whole or not lacking in any thing that we need, just as God is whole and is NAIITS
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definitely not lacking in anything. I think God would not ask something of us that He would not provide; thus God must be providing everything we need to be whole. I am not saying that we are or can become God-like, that would be foolish, but that God is providing each and every individual with everything that they would personally need to be a whole/holy person. The Evangelical Christian view seems to have characterized holiness as being; 1) knowing the rules; and 2) following the rules. Rather, it is 1) a one time event, where you establish a right relationship with the Father of All and you discover that everything you need has been provided to you; and 2) a progression, where you learn how to operate or best use all that you have been given. Model to live in and achieve Wholeness The model is a visual tool as well as a practical method and is based upon an individual‘s personal motivation. A basic premise of the model is that every person, no matter whether they appear motivated or not, is intrinsically motivated to do something. When that motivation is discovered then a plan can be made to move towards wholeness. The model provides a tool to assist the counsellor / minister and the client to move towards wholeness. Native/Christian theology is gently included in all aspects and has been a guiding force in the development of the model, however it has never been the main focus. Although one underlying principle of the model is that a person cannot become whole/holy when he/she is separate from the Father of All. The model uses a ―client-centered directive approach to enhance an individual‘s motivation for positive change.‖11 Client centered means that the client is the director of his or her care and therefore is the person responsible for growth towards wholeness. The counsellor‘s responsibility in the model is to help the client see or understand where they are in life, what they are currently motivated to do, and to enhance the person‘s motivation to positively change. People in each stage will generally use certain words or actions that will indicate to the councillor the stage they are in. Following are the eight stages of the Growth/Change/Wholeness Model: 11
Motivational interviewing technique or premise.
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1. Blissful Ignorance - Characterized by chaos and lack of knowledge; 2. Search for Change - Characterized by contemplation and reasoning; 3. Resistance; 4. Re-birth - Characterized by repentance or a change of ways; 5. Innocence - Characterized by sincerity; 6. Development - Characterized by education; 7. Maturity - Characterized by faithfulness 8. Wisdom - Characterized by experience
Also incorporated into the model are the concepts of relapse and making corrections. Visual Tool The model is a visual tool and I feel it is more necessary to see the model in practice rather than try to explain a step by step process in this short paper. There are two versions of the visual model. Both visual aids are heavily influenced by First Nations traditions, sometimes it is more helpful to see things in a purely Aboriginal context, thus it is depicted as a circular model. The linear model is the one that I use more often. Conclusion The Father of All is gently guiding the restoration of the First Nations, Métis, and Inuit culture for a greater purpose. These ways whether they are used in a Christian ministry or in their traditional sense are to prepare the hearts in order that an oppressed people may receive Jesus and be fully restored. And to let North America know that First Nations people are a gift, Métis people are a gift, and Inuit people are a gift.
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COLONIZATION: Weapons, Gifts, Diseases and Medicine
Robert Francis Introduction For most Americans, words such as ―colonial‖ or ―colonization‖ conjure up warm and cozy feelings with thoughts of the legendary John Smith, the Pilgrim Fathers and Thanksgiving dinners. Americans in general and especially, it would seem, conservative, evangelical American Christians think of colonization as positive activity or even as God-ordained activity. How can this be? While many gnats are strained from the soup, the proverbial camel is swallowed whole (Matthew 23:24). There is a need here, and the need is for the most radical paradigm shift imaginable. A Parable for Indian Country: adapted from Mark 5: 1-20 One day Jesus got into a fishing boat with his 12 disciples, and they all sailed out onto Lake Gennesaret, intending to picnic on the opposite shore. Halfway across the lake, a sudden storm swept in. In keeping with his usual behavior during inclement weather, Jesus was fast asleep in the stern of the boat when a huge twister or whirlwind swept up the little craft, transporting it and its thirteen passengers through space and time to 21st Century North America. When the wind abated, they found themselves on dry land, in the midst of an Indian reservation. Jumping from the boat, John and Peter looked around, shrugged their shoulders and spread a cloth on the ground for the picnic. The boat had landed at the edge of a large cemetery where many graves were marked with make-shift stones or wooden crosses once painted white. In the center of the cemetery stood a large mass grave, a reminder of a massacre of not so long ago. As the others gathered round, taking seats on the sparse grass, Jesus distributed loaves and fishes for the meal. Just then an automobile came roaring down the paved road near where the group sat eating. Having no prior experience with any such machine, the disciples were astonished and more than a bit frightened. The car slowed but did not stop. The passenger door flew open, and a woman, pushed by a hairy, masculine NAIITS
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hand, tumbled into the roadside ditch. She lay there for a moment, a seemingly lifeless heap of rags and flesh. Leaping to her feet, the woman began to scream and cry in an alarming manner. She watched the automobile disappear over a distant hill. Turning, she noticed the disciples and Jesus at their picnic. Shaking her head with fury, the woman ran shrieking up to them, only to stop short, a look of shocked recognition in her eyes. The woman‘s clothing was torn and filthy. Her hair was a mess, shortly cropped, yet matted and caked with greasy dirt and dried blood. There were bruises on her face and on her body. Her lower arms wrevealed a mass of scars and infected cuts, the result of years of self-mutilation. She stank with the combined smells of stale beer, urine, feces and vomit. The disciples were thoroughly disgusted, their appetites gone. The woman stood there, hesitating, a hideously twisted expression on her face. Her astonished silence did not last long. ―Jesus! What are you doing here?‖ screamed a voice from within the woman. ―You‘re the last person I‘d expect to see here!‖ The statement was followed with maniacal laughter. Looking deeply into the woman‘s eyes, Jesus asked, ―What is your name?‖ ―My name?‖ asked the voice. ―What is my name? My name is….Cavalry….Infantry…. Military Mega-Complex. My name is Trading-Company….Border-Town Liquor Store….Multi-National Corporation. My name is Proselytizing Missionary….Religious Order….Denominational Mission Board. My name is White Man‘s School….Historical Misrepresentation….Hollywood Stereotype. We are many. We are organized. We are in control. Our intentions are always and only for the very best.‖ ―Get out of her,‖ Jesus said. ―Get out of her? But where would we go?‖ the voice whined. ―Please, Jesus, don‘t send us out of this land. We like it here.‖ Seeing a small herd of tribally-owned bison grazing in a nearby pasture, the voice said, ―Send us into the buffalo; they‘re nothing but dumb animals.‖
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―NO!‖ Jesus said. ―You have pulled that one on me before. The time of forbearance is over. There remains no place for you in this land. There remains no place for you in any land. Get out! Get The Hell Out!‖ With one last shriek, the evil spirits left the woman. The disciples and Jesus took her to a nearby house. She bathed, shampooed her hair and put on clean clothes. This was the home of the woman‘s aunt, who began phoning people even as she prepared something for Jesus and the disciples to eat. The disciples had their appetites back by now and were glad for a change from loaves and fishes. As Jesus and the disciples enjoyed their meal, several of the woman‘s relatives arrived to see if what they had heard was really true. All were amazed at the change in their sister. Finally, Jesus stood up and said, ―I appreciate your hospitality, but we have to be going now if we‘re to catch the next twister back to Galilee.‖ The woman who had been healed also stood. ―Jesus,‖ she said, ―may I go with you? I want to become a Christian.‖ With a weary smile and a shake of his head, Jesus replied, ―No child; this is not my intent for you. Stay here, with your own people, and tell them what Creator has done.‖ The Nature of Colonization and the Need for Decolonization In order to understand the need for decolonization, we must first comprehend the nature of colonization being honest and courageous enough to call it for what it is. Colonization is what happens when one people invades the territory of another people, appropriating the territory as their own, asserting control over and actually or essentially destroying the original inhabitants through outright murder, hegemonic subjugation, enslavement, removal or absorption into the society and culture of the colonizers. Colonization is violence and violation of the most extreme sort. Colonization is theft and rape and murder and cannibalism on the grandest scale. Colonization is genocide. There is nothing worse under the sun.
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Four Tools or Weapons of Colonization The four weapons or tools of colonization are: 1. Religion 2. Economics 3. Military 4. Education In the story above, military was placed first in order to link ―A Parable for Indian Country‖ with the story of ―The Healing of a Demon-Possessed Man‖ found in Mark 5:1-20. The evil spirits in the biblical story called themselves ―Legion,‖ in direct reference to the Roman military. Military will be addressed in more detail later as, contrary to recently contrived and Pulitzer Prize awarded mythology, colonization does not begin with guns, germs and steel. 1 Colonization begins with religion, specifically with theology that serves to raise the colonizers above those to be colonized. Such theologies of conquest are most usually based on exclusive truth claims and exclusive notions of salvation. The idea that every nation since the dawn of creation has been itching to overthrow its neighbors and set up dominion as a colonizing empire is proved false through the archeological record.2 However, when a people develops the idea that they have exclusive possession of communication from God and exclusive control of the means of salvation, all peoples on earth stand in peril. Since the fall of 2001, a popular tee-shirt design among American Indian people has been a picture of armed Apache warriors along with the words ―Original Homeland Security: Fighting Terrorism Since 1492.‖ This is not so much a joke as it is a statement of grim reality. In the mid 1500s, Juan Gines de Jared Diamond, Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1999). Diamond ignores important theological factors as he seeks to excuse empire building as a naturally occurring phenomenon. 2 James DeMeo, ―Peaceful Versus Warlike Societies in Pre-Columbian America: What do Archaeology and Anthropology Tell Us?‖ in Unlearning the Language of Conquest: Scholars Expose Anti-Indianism in American, edited by Four Arrows [Don Trent Jacobs] ( Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006), 134-152. 1
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Sepulveda, writing of what he saw as the best way to control Indians, said, ―….add threats to doctrine and advice and thus spread terror…. When healthy doctrine is added to useful terror…. the force of terror may break bad habits, then…. we rejoice in the salvation of many.‖3 Exclusive truth claims continue to the present day, terrorizing indigenous peoples. Another tool or weapon of colonization is economics. While peaceful and reciprocal trade between indigenous communities serves to foster or promote understanding and interrelatedness, trade between an empire and indigenous communities is a weapon of conquest. Such trade is invariably unbalanced rather than reciprocal, with wealth being drained away from indigenous communities even as dependencies are created for previously unneeded goods and services. Indebtedness is generated, leading to appropriation of lands to settle the debts. This continues to the present day with the credit-card economy. Sustainable indigenous lifeways are replaced by the disconnected and unsustainable economy of the colonizers. While every able-bodied member of an indigenous community may serve as a warrior in time of need, there is no such thing as a career military within indigenous communities. The military caste or class is found only in colonizing empires and in subservient nation states built or founded by colonizing empires. The military exists chiefly to provide security for the economic or so-called free-market endeavors of the colonizers.4 While the makeup of the military may originally be those of the colonizers‘ own people, very shortly, the colonized themselves are recruited to replace the colonizers as a large part of the military force. Economic incentives are used to recruit colonized people even though veterans of military service are often left at greater economic disadvantage, returning to their communities with Juan Gines de Sepulveda as quoted in Luis N. Rivera, A Violent Evangelism: The Political and Religious Conquest of the Americas (Louisville: Westminster / John Knox Press, Translation 1992), 220. 4 David Gabbard, ―Before Predator Came: A Plea for Expanding First Nations Scholarship as European Shadow Work,‖ in Unlearning the Language of Conquest: Scholars Expose Anti-Indianism in American, edited by Four Arrows [Don Trent Jacobs] (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006), 224. 3
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physical and/or mental impairments. Another factor in the recruitment of those from colonized indigenous communities for military service is a confusion or transference of a profound love for and relationship with the land to a patriotic subservience or allegiance to the government of the colonizing empire. This transference is further enabled by use of the colonizing tools or weapons of religion and education. The strategy of recruiting the colonized to continue the work of colonization is not confined to the military but is also used in the religious, economic and educational tools of conquest. Systems of education put in place by the colonizers serve to undermine and usurp the place of indigenous knowledge. Indigenous knowledge and wisdom are taught to be, at best, quaint anachronism and, at worst, foolish and harmful superstition. The theology, medicine, science, laws and historical views of the colonizers are taught as superior. Indigenous children may be removed from families and placed in residential schools, effectively breaking down indigenous social structure. The combination of public school, Sunday school and Vacation Bible School is particularly effective, especially when followed up with Bible College and seminary. Film media, both Movies and TV, also provide means of colonizing education through stereotyping and defaming. For both the colonizer and the colonized, education falsely characterizes colonization as angelic activity or ‗ev-angelic‘ activity rather than as the demonic activity it is. These tools or weapons—religion, economics, military and education—are interconnected and interdependent. One factor the tools have in common is dependency or co-dependency based in fear: fear of hell-fire, fear of deprivation, fear of violence, fear of disadvantage. Sepulveda was right; terror is the ultimate tool or weapon of colonization, encompassing all others. The following diagram illustrates the four tools of the colonization model:
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Four Promised Gifts and Four Diseases of Colonization The four gifts promised by colonization are: 1. Salvation 2. Development 3. Security 4. Civilization The colonizers claim to bring knowledge of the one true God and the only hope of salvation. In making such a claim, colonizers mistake their own theology (what they say about God) with the unfathomable reality of God. This is idolatry. The colonizers claim to bring opportunity for advancement and development, but at a very great price. ―What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?‖ (Mark 8:36). The colonizers claim to bring order and peace, full security and freedom. ―‗Peace, peace,‘ they say, when there is no peace‖ (Jeremiah 8:11b). Consider the terms Pax Romana and Pax Americana. The colonizers claim to bring culture and enlightenment, all the trappings of civilization. However, an indigenous culture is that which makes a people who they are, giving them their own unique identity, setting them apart and connecting them, as a people, in the land and with Creator. The NAIITS
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offered gifts of the colonizers are already present within every intact indigenous culture as illustrated by the following diagram:
As shown in the Indigenous Culture Model language, oral tradition, ceremonies and agriculture constitute the four indispensable aspects of indigenous culture which serve to connect an indigenous People with Creator and the Land. This is more fully explained in my essay entitled ―Restoring Indigenous Cultures‖ written in July 2006. Actual Gifts of Colonization In contrast to the promised gifts, the actual gifts of colonization (which will be discussed with the four diseases) are: 1. Imbalance 2. Oppression 3. Violence 4. Destruction Four Diseases of Colonization The diseases or 4-Hs of colonization are: 1. Hatred 2. Hunger 3. Helplessness 4. Hopelessness NAIITS
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As the colonized are convinced that God hated them and their people so much that he never spoke to them or reached out to them except through the violence of colonization, the colonized learn to hate themselves. Self-hatred leads to all forms of selfabuse from addictive behavior to suicide. Self-hatred is extended to others as community falls apart. As the indigenous economic system is disrupted and replaced, hunger results: real hunger (starvation) and imaginary hunger (greed). As inherent sovereignty or the right of self-determination is denied, indigenous communities are brought into dependent status, loosing the ability to help or sustain themselves. They become subject to every form of abuse from without and within. Colonization has never been, is not and will never be a positive or God-ordained activity. Colonization is genocide, which is defined as the dissolution and ultimate destruction of targeted human groups, as groups.5 Apart from the prophetic realization that colonizing empires, without exception, eventually crumble and fall, there often remains no vision of a better future. Four Medicines for Decolonization The four medicines for decolonization are: 1. Awareness 2. Anger 3. Amputation 4. Atonement All are colonized, including (maybe especially) those we think of as colonizers. Decolonization cannot begin without awareness of what colonization is and what it does to human beings and to creation. The natural and appropriate response to such awareness is anger. This anger may first be turned toward the colonizers, until it is understood that the colonizers are themselves human beings who are colonized. While anger is appropriate, the anger must ultimately be turned away from fellow human beings and toward colonization itself which exists as an evil spirit in the earth. Jesus spoke of cutting off an offensive foot or plucking out an offensive eye (Mark 45-47). By Luis N. Rivera, A Violent Evangelism: The Political and Religious Conquest of the Americas (Louisville: Westminster / John Knox Press, Translation 1992), 220. 5
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amputation, I mean cutting away those things which have become so familiar as to seem parts of oneself, yet are themselves malignant. Amputation means examining our own lives and the groups to which we belong for colonizing or colonized aspects, being willing to call it for what it is and willing to work toward its extrication. Care should be taken in discerning that which is malignant from that which is broken. Rather than remove a broken bone, one binds it up until it heals. A cancerous growth, on the other hand, must be excised. The greater purpose here is the lessening and eventual breaking of the dependency on or co-dependency with the colonizing power. Atonement is found in a realization of relatedness and restoration of relationship between Creator and all of creation— the oneness of all that is. Atonement includes and is effected by the restoration of all aspects of a balanced indigenous culture. These four medicines of decolonization are evident in the greater story of Jesus‘ cleansing of Herod‘s Temple and Jesus‘ resultant arrest, crucifixion and resurrection (Mark 11:11-33, 14:43-16:8). On the first day of the week, Jesus enters Jerusalem, goes to the temple. There is awareness that things are not as they are meant to be. The temple is used by the colonizers as a means of controlling and stealing resources from the people. The next morning, Jesus‘ anger is made apparent in his cursing of a fig tree on his way back to Jerusalem. Arriving in Jerusalem, Jesus mobilizes his followers for a massive demonstration of protest at the temple. The driving out of the money changers and merchants is an act of amputation. This incident marks the climax of Jesus‘ ministry of decolonization. More than any other action of Jesus, this incident at the temple leads directly to Jesus‘ arrest, crucifixion and subsequent resurrection through which Jesus‘ followers find inspiration for atonement. Application What about Indians in churches? What about Indians working within the colonizers‘ economic system? (Even for those groups working toward self-sufficiency, it‘s almost impossible to be completely divorced from the colonizers‘ economic system.) What about Indians in the military or in the colonizers‘ schools, colleges or seminaries? Consider these three passages from the Bible. NAIITS
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1. ―For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life‖ (John 3:16). 2. ―Anyone who chooses to become a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God‖ (James 4:4b). 3. ―Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him‖ (1 John 2:15). The same Greek word ―kosmos‖ is translated as ―world‖ in all these passages. Its basic meaning is ―orderly arrangement‖ on a grand scale. The question is, ―What or whose orderly arrangement?‖ The answer is hopefully found in the context of how the word is used in a given passage. The writer of James says ―to become a friend of the world‖ is to ―become an enemy of God.‖ The writer of 1 John says ―Do not love the world,‖ while the writer of the Gospel of John says ―God so loved the world.‖ Either these passages are completely contradictory or they speak of very different orderly arrangements. My understanding is that John 3:16 speaks of the orderly arrangement of the Creator, the orderly arrangement CreatorSon comes to restore, while James 4:4 and 1 John 2:15 both speak of the orderly arrangement of the colonizing empire, a grotesque mockery of Creator‘s design. In which world are the churches, the economic system, the military, the schools, colleges and seminaries? Inasmuch as they are tools or weapons of colonization, they are of that colonizing world. So again, what about those Indians and other colonized people in churches or working within the colonizers‘ economic system or in the military or in the colonizers‘ schools, colleges or seminaries? When Roman soldiers, evidently touched by the words of John the Baptist asked, ―‗And what should we do?‘ He replied, ‗Don‘t extort money and don‘t accuse people falsely – be content with your pay.‘‖ (Luke 3:14). It‘s rather curious, but that‘s all he is recorded as saying. Jesus, in his prayer for his followers said, ―I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the NAIITS
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evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it‖ (John 17:14-16). In stark contrast, in the Revelation of John, a voice from heaven says, ―Come out of her my people, so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues; for her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes‖ (Revelation 18:4). We each have to make up our own minds. As I have said before, all are colonized. Even the President of the United States is colonized, and Creator loves him. But Creator does not worship him, and neither should we. Nor should we worship the power the President represents or the power of the religious denominations or any other colonizing power. The radical paradigm shift, the realization of the nature of colonization, will lead us to what the Bible calls ―repentance.‖ We will change sides, seeking freedom and cultural restoration for the People. As people who, with Creator‘s help, are entering the process of decolonization, we go as we are led by the Spirit. We should understand that there are indeed people with a heart for decolonization in the churches, in business, even in the military as well as in schools, colleges and seminaries, even if most of these organizations, the systems themselves are broken or even malignant, delivered over to the enemy as tools or weapons of colonization. Even so, it is not for us to somehow share power with the colonizers. Jesus did not do this, although the offer was made (Matthew 4:8-10). In any case, the colonizers‘ power, although it may look impressive, is in reality false and fleeting. True power is of the Creator, and the Creator is not the author of colonization. Looking ahead to the time when the colonizing empire will fall, we should seek to lessen dependency or codependency with the colonizing power rather than increasing that dependency, lest we fall along with the colonizers. If we are called into church, into the economic system, into the military, into school, college or seminary, it is proper that we go in the way of a warrior entering the camp of the enemy, knowing the dangers that are there, knowing that we risk captivity and death at the hands of cannibals, knowing that at the very least NAIITS
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we will sustain grievous wounds, the scars of which we will bear all our lives. If we enter those places, we enter not for the sake of the colonizing power, but that the People may live and be restored as Creator intends. Jesus came for the purpose of decolonization. Jesus came with good news for the poor, freedom for the prisoners, recovery of sight for the blind, release for the oppressed. Jesus came to restore the land to its rightful inhabitants (Luke 4:18-19). Jesus entered the seat of the colonizing power. He rode into Jerusalem. He stormed into the temple. He walked into the governor‘s own mansion and out of the city to the place of the skull. He will forever bear the scars. That is what Jesus did, and as surely as we choose to call ourselves Jesus‘ followers, we may do no less. We must live our lives and give our lives for the purpose of decolonization, that the People may live.
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MISSIONAL COMMUNITY Dean Johnson, Ivan Wells and Victoria Wells
Forward We have a desire to share what is happening on the West Coast of Vancouver Island, Canada in 2007. We acknowledge the Ahousaht and Ehattesaht for allowing us to share these lessons and perspectives with others. Kleco. Kleco. This paper is intentionally published as a ‗Draft‘ for the simple reason that it is a work in process. As we learn more or are corrected in our thinking and learning by our elders, colleagues or mentors, we may have to change our minds. Introduction The Esperanza General Hospital was founded in 1937. Steeped in a Eurocentric evangelical Christian worldview, the first hospital staff was considered a ‗strange people.‘ It took years of faithfulness, excellence, kindness and countless mistakes to build some credible relationship with the First Peoples of the coast. This paper demonstrates the transformation that is occurring from being a ―mission to‖ to becoming ―missional‖ on the West Coast of Vancouver Island, Canada, in a First Nation Nuu-chah-nulth context. It is birthed out of reflection on where we have come from, where we are now, and where we are going. Recently the Ahousaht, Ehattesaht and Esperanza leaderships embarked upon a journey of healing resulting in renewed hope, sense of purpose and ultimately reconciliation between Creator and creation. We look at lessons taken from the traditional teachings and beliefs of the Nuu-chah-nulth in a specific set of events that culminate in June 2007, including traditional justice, protocol and spiritual practices. With the underlying premise that Nass (the Creator) has revealed himself in part to all people groups throughout history, the authors examine traditional Nuu-chah-nulth practices in light of scripture in an attempt to understand the Creator‘s ancient redemptive message to the Nuu-chah-nulth people and NAIITS
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its application to the world today. But we begin with an overview of what went wrong in European missions to North American indigenous peoples. Defacing the Image of God Where Have We Gone Wrong? Justice Thomas Berger stated that, ―Native peoples everywhere insist that their own culture is still the vital force in their lives; the one fixed point in a changing world is their identity as Natives.‖1 It is this force that has allowed us to survive the assimilation policies of the church and state. The more strenuously the dominant culture has attempted to coerce Natives into assimilating, the more entrenched Native Traditionalists have become. There are more North American Natives speaking their Native languages today than ever before.2 The Creator created all peoples and all languages. We were all created in His image. Psalms 19 tells us that ―the heavens declare the glory of God.‖ Everything within the created universe reflects something of the nature of God. In much the same way that a forest fire defaces a mountain, His image in all of us has been defaced. However it has not been effaced. Just as a burned out forest can grow and be restored so can the image of God in man. In order for a clear image of God to appear amongst humanity the face of Christ must shine clearly from all nations. It is incumbent on all people to reflect critically on the person and function of the Christ. The words must belong to the people. They must come from them. Any theologians wishing to be involved must also be personally involved in the people‘s religious experiences and in their reflection upon these experiences.3 The history of world missions has often failed to seek the face of Christ within other cultures. Rather it has too often been to eradicate that face and to introduce and indoctrinate people. We offer this challenging quote from George Tinker, Professor of Thomas R Berger, Village Journey: the report of the Alaska Native Review Commission (New York: Hill and Wang, 1985), 7. 2 Michael J. Oleksa, Orthodox Alaska: A Theology of Mission (Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, 1992), 220. 3 Ibid., 127 1
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American Indian Cultures and Religious Traditions at ILIFF School of Theology in Denver: Every missionary who has ever served among Native Americans, both past and, unfortunately, present, has been caught in a similar bind that has predicated his or her behavior in the mission context. Whether preaching to, discipling, interpreting, or making judgments about Native Americans, the missionaries‘ concerns and actions have been shared by their European and Euro-American cultural context and institutional commitments…. The question of how well-intentioned missionaries of the past could be so blind must eventually translate into an introspective questioning of our own modern blindness.4
It is not enough to distant ourselves from the past by pointing out the errors and follies of our predecessors. In the words of Brian McLaren, We must not indulge in a naive-and-arrogant protest, denouncing the failures of our forebears or cousins in the faith with sufficient vehemence to somehow exonerate ourselves. No, rather, we need to say that those bad guys back there or over there are ―us‖, here, now. We need to say, as the people did in Nehemiah‘s day, that we are no better than our fathers (Nehemiah 9). Only that kind of repentance will enable Christians to be truly born again in any way that matters.5
Historical Perspective While the redemptive work of God is just that, His work, he allows us to participate in it. Actually he requires it. God takes our feeble contributions and weaves them into His master plan of redemption. Just as he used the starving widow‘s handful of flour and oil (I Kings 17), he uses our meager contributions. What he asks for is faithfulness. To understand and effectively participate in God‘s redemptive work it is important to look to history to learn from both the successes and the failures of those
George E. Tinker, Missionary Conquest: the Gospel and Native American cultural genocide (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993), 113,120. 5 Brian D. McLaren, A Generous Orthodoxy (El Cajon, CA: Youth Specialties, 2006), 304. 4
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who have gone before us, and also to reflect on our own the successes and failures. As Richard Twiss states, We are saying, when 9-out-of-10 Native people reject Christianity as the ―White Man‘s Religion‖ after 500 years of evangelization, what relevance does colonial Christianity have with us as First Nations people? Should we not be challenging the churches [sic] assumptions about how a mission IS STILL being done by the dominant culture church among our people today! If not, can we expect the next 500 years to be any different, with our people devastated by alcohol, poverty, shame and brokenness, with hope so close in Jesus Christ?6
Colonial Missions Historically there have been four philosophies of missions to Natives in the colonization of the Americas.7 In broad strokes the two most prominent are those of the Spanish (Catholic) and the British (Protestant). The Spanish philosophy can be summed up as Natives are our children. They left two images of Christ, the emaciated Mary and the crucified Christ. Both invoke devotion but not empowerment, resulting in parishes where the clergy ruled, at times mercilessly. In 1598 at the Native village of Acoma, New Mexico, the recently arrived Spanish priest, Onate, read a theological justification for the conquest. Despite their seeming acquiescence, the people rebelled against the invaders several months later. The seventy well armed Spanish soldiers killed about eight hundred Acomans, and captured and tried close to six hundred for civil disobedience. All of the men were sentenced to 20 years of slavery and had a foot amputated. The children were sentenced to twenty years of slavery and given to the soldiers. The visitors had a hand amputated and were told to go and tell their villages what would happen if they did not obey the king and the pope.8 In the words of Onate, ―Such force effected the conquest but did not facilitate early conversion to
Richard Twiss, ―Smoke Signals‖ (Oct. 6, 2006). Emphasis in original. Ray Bakke, Lecture Series OVI 701 (Seattle, June 2006). 8 George P. Hammon and Agapito Rey, Don Juan de Onate: colonizer of New Mexico 1595-1628 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1953), 355. 6 7
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Christian allegiance and faith.‖9 Ironically, 36 years later Fray Alonso de Benavides stated that ―through the preaching and ministry of the seraphic sons of Saint Francis, more than 500,000 souls are now converted, to the honour and glory of God, our Lord.‖ 10 He went on to say how ―domestic‖ they had become and how they lived with great propriety. My cynical side says the ―domestication‖ had to do more with submission to force and terror than to a personal relationship with Jesus. The British philosophy viewed America as the New Canaan and First Nations people as the Amorites or Hittites that needed to be purged from the land. Hostility between the colonists and the original inhabitants was intensified by the Puritan belief that Native culture and spirituality were equivalent to Satanism. Powwows, central to Native life and culture, were described by Gookin as ‗partly wizards and witches.‘11 Hence the focus of the missionary effort was to introduce Native people to a ―Christian‖ lifestyle with the deliberate attempt to destroy a way of life. In the colonization of America the church or missionary involvement exhibited two general patterns. One pattern, which viewed immigrant America as the New Israel, overtly helped build the theological base for the doctrine of Manifest Destiny. This became justification for brutal military conquest. The other pattern was critical of white American dealings with Indians or blacks, but lived its own Manifest Destiny agenda: ―expansion with honour.‖ This meant conversion to an assumed superior culture, values and societal structures every bit as much as it meant conversion to the gospel of Jesus Christ.12 Russian Orthodoxy, a third philosophy, taught that the Holy Spirit came long before the missionaries. God had revealed himself in part to all cultures. The most successful missionary effort during this time frame came out of Orthodoxy. It spanned Marie Therese Archambault, Mark G. Thiel, and Christopher Vecsey, The Crossing of Two Roads: being Catholic and Native in the United States (Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books, 2003), 8. 10 Ibid., 355. 11 Daniel Gookin, Collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society., 1st ser., no. I: 154. 12 Gookin, Collection M.H.S.. 9
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three continents and ten time zones. Orthodoxy reached Alaska in 1794 with a strikingly different approach than evangelical colonial missions in Africa or South America. Orthodoxy generally held a positive view of traditional societies and did not feel an obligation to attack all the pre-contact religious beliefs. Their early missionaries learned the languages, sought to understand the people‘s beliefs, and translated scripture and songs into Aleut. They felt that they could ―announce the revelation of God in Christ as truly Good News without completely denigrating the religious beliefs or pagan practices the tribe had maintained.‖13 This permitted the retention of language, customs and the worldview of oneness between the spiritual and the physical, between the natural and the supernatural. Modern Missions In 1793 William Carey left Britain for distant shores. His example has been followed by thousands of missionaries since. In much the same way that Paul‘s Roman citizenship proved beneficial to his efforts, western prosperity and political power provided resources that fueled the extension of the gospel. The apparent success of the modern mission effort is remarkable yet is not without its difficulties. Reluctant Imperialism14 The sending church most often was aligned with Christendom. It possessed wealth, knowledge and power and hence held control. This resulted in a model that is in clear contradiction to Jesus and his early disciples. The message was also often accompanied with imperialistic attitudes and agendas. This is exemplified clearly in the residential school system established in Canada whose clear aim was assimilation of First Nations people into the dominant culture. The power and control of the church led to corruption and abuse to the extent that one British Columbia Supreme Court judge stated that the Indian residential school system was nothing more than "institutionalized Michael Oleksa, Orthodox Alaska: a theology of mission (Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir‘s Seminary Press, 19998), 61. 14 Jonathan Bonk, ―All Things to All Persons: Missionary as a RacistImperialist‖ in Missiology 8, No. 3 (1980): 285-306. 13
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pedophilia.‖15 Although modernity brought a separation between church and state, missionaries were often allied with colonialism even if unintentionally. Tinker claims that the church has ultimately functioned to provide theological justification for acts of conquest, even when it has protested to the contrary or interceded at the surface level on behalf of the conquered.16 Ethnocentrism Missionaries also carried their cultural values embedded in ethno-superiority and triumphalism. They were the bearers of THE message with little or no awareness or concern for what the Holy Spirit had already been revealing to people. Even today we can see the repercussions of such an approach. The beauty of diversity has been muddied in the name of ―Christian purity.‖17 The result is that in First Nations circles Christianity is widely viewed as the white man's religion.18 There is a general belief in "God". He is known as the Creator and has various names. No one has to convince very many of us that he exists. However, over the years many of us have learned to separate who we really are and long to be (First Nations people) from our faith. We have learned that our songs and dances, ceremonies and customs, our languages and names are not Christian. We refer to our "Native" name as opposed to our "Christian" name. We speak of having a "traditional" wedding as opposed to having a "Christian wedding". These things point to a conflict: we can not be truly "Native" and "Christian" at the same time. This false teaching has kept many from fully embracing the Christian faith. In making this point I have been asked to what extent cultural expressions are, or are not, expressions of worship of other spirits? This is a good question. It needs to be asked. However it needs to be asked and answered by discerning Christians within their own cultures. Two scriptures come to mind. In R. V. Plint (March 21, 1995, British Columbia Supreme Court). Tinker, George E., Missionary conquest: the Gospel and Native American cultural genocide (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993), Preface. 17 Jamie Arpin-Ricci, Looking Forward: Facing the Future of Christian Leadership (Pennsylvania: Healing the Land Publishing, 2005), 47. 18 Craig Stephen Smith, Whiteman's Gospel (Winnipeg, Manitoba: Indian Life Ministries, 1998). 15 16
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Matthew chapter 13 Jesus warns against separating the wheat from the weeds because we might get confused and pull out the wheat. What we think might be a weed could in fact be something of value. In Matthew 7 Jesus encourages each person to examine the log in his own eye before he begins examining his neighbours. Each society and every culture should be asking itself to what extent their expressions of worship are merely cultural forms of idolatry. The problem with examining another culture comes when we mistakenly define worship as being appropriate only when it is expressed in a familiar way. For example a Native Christian man was asked if he really needed his drums. Wasn‘t Jesus enough? He responded that indeed he didn‘t need his drums. That Jesus was more than sufficient. Having said that he went on to point out that on Sunday morning when he went to church and sang hymns and choruses he loved the sound of the piano and organ in the background. Yet he didn‘t need them either because Jesus was enough. Dependence One of the devastating impacts of the legislated reserve system, the residential school system and the Indian Act imposed on First Nations people is ―learned dependence‖. Our way of life, livelihood and ability to care for ourselves was literally beaten out of us and legislated away. We learned in order to survive that we must take the better of two evils and rely on others. Recently at a conference I stated, ―My status card tells me that someone else knows what's best for me.‖ This reliance has become so prevalent it has also spilled over to the church. For the most part it is non-Native people that take positions of leadership in predominantly Native communities. It is non-Native missionaries and church groups that come into the communities as though the First Nations are still the harvest field. First Nations people have learned to play primarily passive roles in the church. Yet, we all know that spiritual maturity and growth involves active participation. Tribal councils, governments, churches and parachurch organizations continue to offer healing opportunities for victims of residential schools. Despite the ―help‖ problems worsen. The more help we receive the more dependent we become. The NAIITS
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―helpers‖ become empowered by default and hence the ―helped‖ become disempowered. This is a biblical principal. Jesus stated that we are more blessed when we give than when we receive (Acts 20:35). Only when the church recognizes its need for change and accepts the ―help‖ to change will the oppressed be strengthened. But there must be reciprocity in giving. Dichotomy of Secular and Sacred This dichotomy was introduced into the western worldview by the Greeks who clearly distinguished the sacred from the profane. It was further entrenched by the trend in modernity that distinguished between ways of knowing. Modernism heralds rational thought and empirical knowledge as the only true way to know something. Spirituality was relegated to the level of the private or personal realm. Hence issues of life that dealt with ―true knowledge‖ as established by rational thought and science became the realm of the secular world. Religion and faith were then relevant only in the individual‘s personal spiritual life. No longer did faith have anything to do with the physical aspects of life. Faith had more to do with belief in a set of doctrinal suppositions than it did with the reign of Christ in our lives, or how we lived in community. Physical sciences, social sciences, economics, management, education, the environment, politics, issues of poverty and oppression became the government‘s responsibility as the agent responsible for secular life. 19 This resulted in a dichotomy between evangelism and social transformation.20 Modernism, fuelled by great successes in science and technology, led to a great optimism that anything was possible. The west confused a confidence in the gospel with a confidence in the expansive power of western civilization. As confidence in culture began to collapse after the world wars, so did confidence in the gospel. Most evangelicals abandoned the seemingly doomed cause of social reform. The term ―social gospel‖ became a dirty word and mission focused on evangelism. The aim was to evangelize the maximum number of unreached Mark A. Noll, The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind (Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans, 1994), Chap. 6. 20 James F. Engel and William A. Dyrness, Changing the mind of Missions: where have we gone wrong? (Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 2000), Chap. 3. 19
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people in the shortest possible time frame. Only the return of Christ could bring about social reform so the best way to bring about this social reform was to hasten the return of Christ by completing the mandate of the ―great commission.‖ This dichotomy is in direct contrast to the gospel accounts of the ―great commission‖. Matthew 28 contains Jesus words: ―All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. …‖ There is no dichotomy here. It is not just authority over the private, individual spiritual lives of a people; it was ALL authority. Also, the command was not to go and simply share a set of doctrinal truths or positions, it was to impart the powerful presence of Christ himself!21 In Mark‘s Gospel another aspect of the ―commission‖ highlighted is to ―preach the good news to all creation‖ (Mark 16:15). The scope of the great commission is broadened to include not just the souls of people but all of God‘s creation. God, through Jesus, has reestablished his rule over all things. The very example of Jesus‘ life, his ministry of healing diseases, providing food and drink for the hungry, along with forgiving sins, demonstrates his holistic worldview devoid of the dichotomy between secular and sacred. The Great Omission Despite the claims of some mission organizations that we are close to completing the mandate given in the great commission, one has to ask, ―Where is the fruit?‖ If the great commission is almost complete, if Jesus‘ prayer that God‘s will be done on earth as it is in heaven is answered, should not we be seeing a different picture in the world than the one of mounting poverty, ever increasing oppression, escalating political and religious tensions, war, epidemics, political instability, and pending environmental disaster? The command was to ―Go and make disciples of all nations … teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.‖
21
Ibid., 31.
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Revisualizing the Image of God Emerging Paradigm Mission is an activity that transforms the world and consequently continually needs transforming itself. David Bosch defines mission as a continual process of sifting, testing, reformulating and discarding.22 Theological and missiological paradigms do not always make a complete break with old ideas. Sometimes elements from older paradigms are incorporated into new ones. Old and new paradigms can often exist simultaneously among different groups of believers. Occasionally an old paradigm is rediscovered by a later generation. A new missionary paradigm is emerging, or one might say an old one is re-emerging. An understanding of missio Dei is central to the paradigm—the idea that mission is not an activity of the church but rather an attribute of God. It is not the church that has a mission to fulfill in the world; it is the mission of the Son and the Spirit through the Father that includes the church.23 It is the good news of God‘s love, incarnated in the witness of a community, for the sake of the world.24 By understanding the Missio Dei, that God has and is revealing himself to all peoples and that the message is ―from God to Man,‖ we can interact as learners. We can humbly receive as well as give. We can recognize the importance of being primarily learners rather than teachers when we interact with another culture. That doesn‘t mean that God hasn‘t given us a message to share but rather that God most likely has given other cultures a message for us as well. We are beginning to realize that other cultures can have a powerful positive impact on our faith. Leslie Newbigin argues that there is not and cannot be a gospel which is not culturally embodied. It takes careful examination to distinguish between what is proper gospel and what is simply part of the traditional culture of the missionary. We cannot critically examine our David J. Bosch, Transforming Mission: Paradigm Shifts in Theology of Mission (Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books, 1991), 511. 23 Ibid., 390. 24 Ibid., 519. 22
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culturally conditioned interpretations of the gospel from within in the same way that we cannot move a bus by pushing it from inside. We must listen to others who read the Bible and whose interpretation is shaped by other cultures.25 Lessons in Protocol: Lessons from the teachings of the Nuu-chah-nulth Thlawk-thlawk-qwa Thieves and robbers come over the wall but true Shepherds come through the gatekeeper, and the gatekeeper opens the gate for them (John 10:1-3).
The remainder of this paper explores some of the Nuu-chahnulth teachings and practices in a search for their message from God to man. A Canadian Indian Status card, do you know what this is? Some people call it an Indian credit card, believing that with this card I can get free education, housing and medical coverage. But do you know what this card says to me? This says to me that someone else knows what‘s best for me; where I should live, what my children should learn, how I should direct my affairs. Why? Thieves and robbers have come over our walls—our boundaries–the very boundaries that God Himself said, ―Do not move the ancient boundaries.‖ We have been neatly tucked away in little corners called reserves so they can take freely from the land that we were entrusted by God to steward. Status cards are tools used by the Canadian Federal Government that track and monitor ‗status Indians‘— symbols of ‗thieves and robbers.‘ By contrast Thlawk-thlawk-qwa is a humble petition. It is major key that unlocks the door and makes the resources of heaven available to earth. It teaches that a humble approach is more successful than an arrogant approach. It is demonstrated by the origin story of Raven who brings light to the world by his willingness to take the form of a tiny, insignificant leaf.26 It is strikingly similar to the approach used by Jesus to bring light Lesslie Newbigin, The Gospel in a Pluralist Society (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1989). 26 E. Richard Atleo Umeek, Tsawalk: A Nuu-chah-nulth Worldview (Vancouver: UBC Press, 2004), 6-10. 25
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into the world by his willingness to take on the tiny, insignificant form of a Hebrew baby. Jesus taught that unless we are willing to change and become like little children we cannot see the kingdom of heaven. Thlawk-thlawk-qwa, or a humble request, is also the standard used for issues of protocol. First Peter 2:17, says, ―Show honour to all people‖. Jesus is the ultimate example and expression of this when he says, ―Behold, I stand at the door and knock.‖ He, who was given all authority on heaven and on earth, the creator of all, the one person that would have the right to go wherever and do whatever he pleases, chooses to humble himself and demonstrate honour by knocking. Nuu-chah-nulth gatekeepers are Ha wilthe (a hereditary chief) or Hawiiah (group of Ha wilthe) their councils and elders. In Ahousaht, as in other Aboriginal communities, there has been trouble for years dealing with the social ills of the community. Some concerned Ahousaht people had attempted to contact all the resource people and ―authorities‖ in an attempt to help stem the tide of destruction, but with extremely limited success. Finally, out of desperation, concerned members of the community used appropriate traditional protocol to seek an audience with the Hawiiah during one of their treaty meetings. Once this thlawk-thlawk-qwa, humble petition, was done with proper protocol it empowered the true recognized traditional leaders, the Hawiiah and their hereditary councils, to achieve what could not be achieved outside this realm. A plan was devised and implemented. Protocol was foremost in the foundation, preparation and implementation of this bold program of the Ahousaht, as is discussed further in this paper. This is evidence of the survival of Nuu-chah-nulth spirituality and traditional governance intact with traditional justice principles, practices and procedures. Tloo-qua-nah - Lessons in Redemption I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me. When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; at night I stretched out untiring hands and my soul refused to be comforted. I remembered you, O God, and I groaned; I mused, and my spirit grew faint. You kept my eyes from closing; I was too troubled to speak. I thought about the
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former days, the years of long ago; I remembered my songs in the night. My heart mused and my spirit inquired: "Will the Lord reject forever? Will he never show his favor again? Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has his promise failed for all time? Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has he in anger withheld his compassion?" Then I thought, "To this I will appeal: the years of the right hand of the Most High." I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds. Your ways, O God, are holy. What god is so great as our God? (Psalm 77:1-13).
Tloo-quah-nah means ―we remember reality‖ or ―we remember the Creator‖. The Nuu-chah-nulth cultural ceremony, called Tloo-quah-nah, is a re-enactment of a story of the rescue of a chief‘s daughter by Aint-tin-mit, a Nuu-chah-nulth hero and rescuer. On a broader level it as a re-enactment of a loss of children to powerful outside forces and their subsequent rescue and restoration to the community. It is a ceremony to remember the Creator. It has a message of hope and good news for all who are oppressed, downtrodden, and beaten by destructive forces in life.27 What follows is a story of a group of people lost to contemporary powerful outside forces and the community‘s plan for rescue and restoration. The call for help Several months ago we received a phone call from a long time friend and leader of the Ahousaht Holistic Center. He asked if we could arrange a time to meet and talk about a group of people the chiefs of Ahousaht wanted to send to Esperanza in late May. It was early May and we were in the middle of a six week family development session. We had had a particularly challenging winter and I knew all the staff were feeling stretched already. I agreed to meet with Dave but part of me was saying, ―We‘ll just have to say no on this one. There is only so much we can do.‖ Yet another part of me was saying, ―Dave has never asked me for anything before. He knows our situation and would only ask if it was very important and I can‘t say no to a friend in need.‖ We met several days later along with a few others from the Holistic center and what he told me sent shivers down my spine. 27
Umeek, Tsawalk: A Nuu-chah-nulth Worldview, 37.
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The hereditary chiefs, the elected council and the Holistic center were planning a bold move that could have a tremendous impact on their community. It was an audacious plan. One of the workers responded, ―I can‘t believe we are actually going to do this. It‘s so scary.‖ Without hesitation I said, ―We‘re in.‖ I was so excited to hear the plan and so honoured to be asked to participate I could hardly contain myself. Before I tell you the plan let me tell you a bit about the community of Ahousaht. It is a First Nations community of about one thousand people on a remote island off the west coast of Vancouver Island. It has a modern K-12 school with a large gym, a police station, health clinic, holistic center, youth center and community center. Many of the youth and adults excel at sports and compete regionally and even provincially. Many have gone on to complete post-secondary education and a number have earned advanced degrees. They have high levels of employment in the fishing industry, in resource management, in education and in tourism. There is a strong cultural education focus and a solid Christian presence in the community. On the flip side there have been dozens of suicide attempts in the past several years. While a majority of adults do not drink there has been a considerable increase in the number of young people drinking and using illegal drugs. For a number of years community members and various organizations have been working in an attempt to stem the tide of substance abuse and violence, and to work at supporting and developing healthy individuals and families. At times it has appeared to be a losing battle, however clear progress can be seen when viewed generationally. After listening to the people, the chiefs and council decided that drastic measures needed to be taken to protect the children in the community from the recent increase in violence, suicide and substance abuse. On May 31st, 2007, the chiefs and other community leaders went door to door with an ultimatum to each person who had been identified as one who was selling drugs or alcohol in the community. They were told that what they were doing would no longer be tolerated and they had a choice, either leave the community or agree to go to Esperanza. Almost all of those identified agreed to go to Esperanza. NAIITS
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The Boats Arrive The morning of June 1st we received the news. The boats from Ahousaht were on their way. The 70 mile trip meant it was about three hours until they arrived. Esperanza sits within the Ehattesaht territory so we contacted them to assemble their Hawiiah to prepare to formally welcome and bless the visitors. The staff at Esperanza, including the Ahousaht Holistic center staff, waited in anticipation wondering who would be on the boats and what frame of mind they would be in. Were we in for a month of bitterness and anger or was the Creator going to do something amazing in all our hearts and lives? Based on 1 Peter 4:8 I shared with the staff that our primary role for the month would be to demonstrate our love and the love of God. They would perhaps feel ashamed or judged and what they needed from us was unconditional love and acceptance. We were down on the dock to greet them as the boats arrived. Generally everyone looked genuinely happy to be there. The chiefs from Ehattesaht arrived and did their protocol of welcome and blessing. After the formalities we shared a meal together. Introductions and welcomes were made and the Ehattesaht told the Ahousaht how proud they were of each individual for their willingness to do whatever was necessary to make their community a better place. There was no shame or guilt implied. Honour was given instead. Within three days we had between fifty and sixty people from Ahousaht in Esperanza. This number included children, elders, counselors and helpers. Originally the plan had been to bring in only the alleged offenders, however the chiefs overruled and said children and spouses could come as well. As the month progressed the wisdom in this decision became apparent for the program became much more community centered. Hishuk-ish Tsawalk: Lessons in worldview He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together (Colossians 1:15-17).
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The worldview held by most modern western missionaries is very different from both the Hebrew worldview and the worldview held by most indigenous people around the world. One of the basic differences is the holistic understanding of life. The Nuu-chah-nulth have a phrase, ―Hishuk-ish Tsawalk‖. It means all is one or we are one with nature. As explained by Stanley Sam, an Ahousaht Elder, The Nuu-chah-nulth have a belief in oneness with nature. Understanding this belief assists the Nuu-chah-nulth to manage resources for a total way of life, and for the health of the earth. Everything begins with spirituality. Naas is the Creator and is the giver of life and all that life offers to us. Naas established the patterns and laws of nature. As Nuu-chah-nulth, our government, our justice system, and our way of life were based on the patterns and laws of nature. The priority of our people was the utmost respect of those things that were given to us by Naas.28
Traditional Native culture is essentially spiritual without a dualistic separation between secular and spiritual, between the sacred and the profane. Umeek, in his book Tsawalk: a Nuuchah-nulth Worldview,29 describes a worldview in which everything is connected. The balance of life and all of its activities are interconnected with the spiritual. One of the reasons why Ahousaht asked Esperanza to partner with them is because Esperanza shares a non-dualistic worldview. Spirituality is not tacked on to the programs we offer; it is central and persistent through all aspects. Caring for young people, working in the kitchen, picking up garbage, or driving a boat are spiritual acts as much as drumming, singing, or Bible studies are. We are reminded of the words of Paul, ―Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God‖ (1 Corinthians 10:31). In this worldview all of life is intertwined between the physical and the spiritual. Hunting, fishing, government issues, justice issues, family life, community life are all both physical and spiritual activities. All physical realities were birthed in the
Ehattesaht Tribe, Back to Basics: Nuu-chah-nulth Management of Natural Resources (Vancouver: Ehattesaht Tribe, 1992). 29 Umeek, Tsawalk: a Nuu-chah-nulth worldview. 28
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spiritual. The Nuu-chah-nulth thus have a clear understanding of the transcendence of the Creator. We saw this belief in practice as the Ahousaht Hawiiah moved the people to Esperanza for a traditional justice intervention. The issues of drug and alcohol abuse were not viewed as isolated violations of certain laws by specific individuals—rather they were viewed as symptoms of a larger systemic, spiritual problem within the entire community. The harmony between the Creator and the created, between the spiritual and the physical was out of sync. Within the Nuu-chah-nulth justice system the illness is addressed, not the symptoms of the illness. It was not only the individual but the individual ‗in‘ family and ‗in‘ community that were encouraged to renew their relationship with their Creator. This action addressed the spiritual poverty that has manifested as social ills in the community. This practice is also demonstrative of traditional corrections and enforcement. ―Traditional corrections was by way of counseling, traditional teachings, and traditional ceremonies to apologize to the victim and the victim‘s family.‖ 30 In addition on the enforcement end of the spectrum, Enforcement of a decision was carried out in harmony with nature and NAAS. There was a strong appeal to the moral sense of the individual‘s innermost being and an appeal for him to accept traditional counseling and therapy. Our people believe that force creates force, whereas respect challenges us to be human.31
Our First Meeting The first night we all sat together in a large circle and each person was given the opportunity to share. There was a lot of anger in the meeting, but also a strong undercurrent that maybe this could be a wonderful thing. One of the helpers from Ahousaht spoke up and said, If you want to be mad at someone be mad at me. I‘m one of the parents who called the band office and reported some of you. I fear so much for my grand children that something terrible will happen 30 31
Ehattesaht Tribe, Back to Basics. Ibid.
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to them. I even reported my own son. Do you know how hard that was? I love all of you and I want a better life for you and for Ahousaht. We have to put a stop to what is happening.
Another couple spoke and said, As soon as we heard there was a list being made of drug dealers and bootleggers we knew our name was going to be on the list. We haven‘t sold anything for over ten months but we are guilty of doing it in the past. It doesn‘t really matter that we aren‘t doing it now because all of us in this room sort of take turns. When one of us quits for a while someone else takes over. We are guilty as a group. I‘m glad we are here and I hope we can make a big difference together as a group.
Another added, Sometimes I have dreams or visions that come true. I‘ve been having a vision or dream of a better Ahousaht where the youth don‘t have to face struggles with drugs and alcohol—where they have a better hope for the future. I think if we work together we can make a big change in our community.
Each person was free to share what was on their heart. No one was lectured. Each person felt listened to and was encouraged to express their anger. What’s the Plan One interesting note is that there was no specific plan or format or daily schedule for the month. The Esperanza staff is used to having a completely organized plan in place before embarking on a role or relationship. This event required complete faith that what was happening was of the Lord. There was no specific duty for the Esperanza staff but to love the people and if this resulted in practical assistance then so be it. For the participants there was no wake up time, curfew, meal or meeting schedule. There was no plan for who would do the cooking or dishes and no set rules. On the second day people began to notice this. One of the leaders, an experienced and skilled facilitator, said ―This is your program. You need to decide on the schedule and format for the month.‖ He returned ownership and control back to the group.
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Self determination had been taken away so often in their lives. For generations the government and church had taken away most of the autonomy in First Nations communities. Children were removed from the villages and sent away to residential schools. Land and livelihood were taken away. The people suffered persistent campaigns to persuade them to assimilate. Their system of governance was dismantled and their traditional holistic worldview challenged. Now they had been forcibly removed, on threat of banishment, from their homes and families and were once again powerless. The facilitators understood the effects on the people. For some a deep, bitter resignation or sense of irretrievable loss held them hostage in a cycle of dependency. Undoubtedly this long suffering grievance has had a bearing on the rates of alcoholism, violence and suicide. The facilitators understood the importance of a renewed sense of self-worth and the importance of a measure of control over their lives and families. The entire program was designed by the group. Interestingly they chose to include ha houpa (cultural teachings) as well as teachings from the Bible on a daily basis. They sat together and worked out the program details. Rules were established; cooking and cleaning responsibilities were shared and meeting schedules planned. An internal form of leadership began to establish itself. Those with an interest or experience in the kitchen naturally took responsibilities in these areas. Others who were skilled at carving or painting spent more time working in the wood shop. Those who enjoyed working with the youth helped out with childcare and youth activities. The month became a wonderful blend of talking circles, group sessions, Bible studies, drumming and singing, carving, painting, canoe repairing, paddle and drum making, fasting and praying. The Canoe There are two beautiful red cedar dugout canoes residing at Esperanza. One is in the stewardship of the Ehattesaht Tribe and one is in the stewardship of my family, the Wells family of Esperanza. They were not always so beautiful. Through my failures in the early 1990‘s they began to grow back into the ground. I desperately sought over the years to have these magnificent vessels repaired but I had neither the knowledge NAIITS
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nor money to hire a skilled carver. However the canoe repairs were incorporated into the Ahousaht Tloo-qua-nah. I had to go through several acts of protocol before this happened; the most important one being directed to ‗the group‘. I asked their permission to incorporate and include this project as part of their time at Esperanza. In doing this I told the story of my failures as a canoe owner and how I had failed my tribe too. My failure was embraced and I was lifted up by this group of people and by their support. There were no questions asked, no need for lengthy delays and no retribution being sought. It was unconditional acceptance and issockmis, respect. The entire group embraced the idea and spent the next three weeks completely rebuilding the old canoe. They removed rot, patched holes, replaced seats, and the entire canoe was stripped, sanded and repainted. It looked like new. When it was time to head home the canoe played an important role. The Chiefs are Coming After several weeks we received the news that the chiefs were coming for a visit. They were not coming to lecture or judge but to listen. They were responding to the call of the group for their presence. The chiefs wanted to encourage and support the changes people were making and they wanted to hear from the people what they, the chiefs, could do to make Ahousaht a better community. This announcement had a galvanizing effect on the group. What were they going to say? Who was going to say it? What was their primary message? There was an air of excitement. This was their chance to speak from the heart and let the chiefs know some of the issues they faced in their lives. One young man spoke out and reminded the group how important it was that they speak without anger. If they wanted to be heard they must speak with respect and honour. In keeping with protocol the Ehattesaht people were informed that the Ahousaht chiefs were coming. A group of people including representatives from the Hawiiah and the elected council of Ehattesaht arrived to welcome them. In the previous weeks singing had become one of the central elements of the program. A drum maker was brought in and each person made a drum. As the plane slipped into sight the drone of its engines was overpowered by the sound of 41 drums and 70 voices NAIITS
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singing. As the chiefs stepped of the float plane on to the dock they were visibly shaken by the sound and sight of the people gathered on the beach singing and welcoming them ashore. They had probably feared anger and resentment. Two people were appointed as speakers: one man and one woman. The man, one who had been particularly angry in the previous weeks, choked back tears as he welcomed them ashore and thanked the chiefs for coming. He said the group felt honoured that they would come to visit them, and they wanted the chiefs to see how they were changing as a group. After the woman spoke the group sang another song and then the Ehattesaht people welcomed the Ahousaht people ashore. We shared a meal together and met for the day. People shared their gratefulness to the chiefs for taking the initiative to do something about the issue of drugs and alcohol on the reserve. They thanked them for caring enough to require them to come to Esperanza. They also gave the chiefs much insight into abuse, oppression, and poverty that lead to these kinds of problems. They talked about housing, employment, and abuse of power issues. Oosumich: Lessons in Prayer – Private and Corporate Those with an understanding of Oosumich would perhaps have a fuller understanding of the prayers of Jesus on the mountain and the subsequent interaction between the natural and the supernatural. [Jesus] went up into the hills by himself to pray. Night fell while he was there alone. Meanwhile, the disciples were in trouble far away from land, for a strong wind had risen, and they were fighting heavy waves. About three o‘clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. When the disciples saw him walking on the water, they were terrified. In their fear, they cried out, ―It‘s a ghost!‖ But Jesus spoke to them at once. ―Don‘t be afraid,‖ he said. ―Take courage. I am here!‖ Then Peter called to him, ―Lord, if it‘s really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water.‖ ―Yes, come,‖ Jesus said. So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink. ―Save me, Lord!‖ he shouted. Jesus immediately reached out and
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grabbed him. ―You have so little faith,‖ Jesus said. ―Why did you doubt me?‖ (Matthew 14:23:31).
Oosumich is a private spiritual activity that can involve varying degrees of fasting; cleansing in river, lake or salt water; celibacy, prayer and isolation. It is an activity of self-control and discipline. It can last, depending on the situation, for days, weeks or even months and years.32 There are levels of spiritual preparation, from the simple cleansing of hands before going fishing for spring salmon to the years of purification and rigorous training of the whalers.33 Oosumich was a recognized way of life. One of the understandings of Oosumich was that prayer and cleansing of the body, spirit and mind was a petition of great effort and commitment. It was not a quick prayer as they headed off in the canoe to chase a whale. It stemmed from a deep understanding of Ah-inch-a-naa Nass, ―we are completely dependant on God.‖ It was a way for the physical and spiritual to become connected. There are documented records of whales presenting themselves to the whalers as willing sacrifices. Those who understand oosumich would not be surprised that after such prayers Jesus could supernaturally walk on water. There are important lessons for us to learn from this Nuu-chanulth practice. How shallow do our prayers seem in relation? How often are our prayers simply formalities that we go through before we move on under our own strength and agenda? During the time of the Ahousaht stay in Esperanza there was an interesting co-relation between those who practiced oosumich and those who were asked by their group to represent them in various activities discussed later; they were some of the same people. A Song in the Woods
For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign LORD will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations (Isaiah 61:11).
Umeek, Tsawalk: A Nuu-chah-nulth Worldview, 17. Martha Black, ÒHuupuKwanum Tupaat: Out of The Mist : Treasures of The Nuu-chah-nulth Chiefs (Victoria: Royal British Columbia Museum, 1999), 25. 32 33
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Contextual worship emerges from the rhythms of the culture. Those who form incarnational communities to witness into subcultures soon find that their worship needs to be rethought, not only to be accessible to those they wish to reach, but also to the people they have now become.34 Recently enjoying a warm evening after a rainy day I crossed the back bridge over our little creek at Esperanza. I paused to listen. I thought I heard a voice over the sound of running water. The steady beat of a drum, much like the beat of a heart, came into focus. Then I heard the singing, faint yet strong. Eager to participate, I quickened my pace and followed the old road up the hill to the green house. Gathered loosely in a circle were thirty or forty people, young and old, male and female drumming in unison and singing. As I looked at their faces a lump formed in my throat and my eyes misted. A young boy sobbed uncontrollably while clinging to his mother‘s leg. I couldn‘t immediately grasp the emotion but I knew it wasn‘t a physical pain. His mother was beating the drum as hard as she could and singing at the top of her lungs. I didn‘t understand the words at the time but the meaning was clear. This was worship—a song of thankfulness to the Creator. It was a plea for strength for those off in the woods fasting and praying. It was a cry for mercy. Singing is a huge part of Nuu-chah-nulth culture. Singing demonstrates belonging. It provides the listener with an understanding about who you are, where you are from, what family you belong to, and who you are connected to and accepted by.35 It is similar to the practice of reciting genealogy we find in the Old Testament. It gives us placement. Singing can also be an expression of love and support. It is ceremonial with ownership jealously guarded and generously shared. It gives expression to some of the highest forms of thanksgiving, admiration and petitions. Most songs are owned by someone.36 Many of these ancient songs have deep meaning and significance. Even in our contemporary ceremonies; singing, owning and composing songs Michael Frost, Exiles: Living Missionally in a Post-Christian Culture (Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers, 2006), 293-294. 35 Tribe, Back to Basics, 7. 36 Umeek, Tsawalk: a Nuu-chah-nulth worldview, 107. 34
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is a reflection of practiced spirituality and connection to the Creator. A composer is considered a person who is anointed with songs rather than someone who is good with words and rhythm. Singing is a refreshing and empowering activity and necessary to the survival of the spirituality the Nuu-chah-nulth. Over the centuries songs have played a significant role in many movements of people groups coming out of oppression. Isaiah sang numerous songs while in exile in Babylon. The people were tired of their slavery and oppression and they yearned for freedom and vindication. In the 1980‘s six opponents of the Berlin wall gathered to sing and pray for freedom. By 1989 their numbers had swelled to twelve thousand. An East German communist leader said, ―We had planned everything, we were prepared for everything, but for singing and prayers.‖37 In 1983 after the assassination of Philippine opposition leader Benigno Aquina, the streets of Manila were packed with protestors singing and chanting for change. Four days later Marcos was ousted from power. South Africans sang in the midst of entrenched apartheid. Ukrainians sang on the steps of their parliament when the ousted government refused to give up power to the duly elected party. Songs to the Creator have brought strength to communities suffering from oppression. Today new songs are being written. We need songs that sing the praises of God, that cry out for justice in the midst of oppression. Traditional songs will play a significant role in the emergence of a truly authentic Nuu-chah-nulth understanding of who Jesus is. Fasting As the month was drawing to a close a number of individuals decided they wanted to fast for a few days. In the traditional way those that were going to fast sat in a circle and shared a large bowl of chumus (berries & fruit). Others sat in an outer circle praying and singing. After they had eaten they headed up into the hills behind Esperanza where they had each prepared a shelter where they would stay for the duration of their fast. Each evening the rest would gather in a clearing part way up the hill to sing and pray and to encourage those who were fasting. Michael Frost, Exiles: Living Missionally in a Post-Christian Culture (Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers, 2006), 318. 37
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It was in this circle that I experienced pure community worship. I received a clearer understanding of what ―church‖ is supposed to be. I experienced a group of believers that truly loved each other; that cried out to the Creator for strength and protection, both personally and communally. I sang songs of praise that were powerful and meaningful. Young and old were together as one. Arms and heads were turned upwards. There were no guitars or familiar ―Christian‖ tunes. Rather the ancient songs that brought hope and gratitude were sung using only drums as accompaniment. The drums matched the beat of our hearts as we worshipped together. I realized how narrow I had become in my understanding of worship. The Creator transcends all cultures. It was a transforming experience to worship God in the context of Nuu-chah-nulth culture. Heading Home Much thought and preparation went into planning the trip home. The dream was for the group to return by canoe and then to be welcomed ashore by the whole community. Much concern was voiced over this option. There were young children and pregnant women; the weather was unsettled and unpredictable so it would be difficult to pre-arrange an arrival time; the Hawiiah were primarily concerned with safety. It was finally agreed the group would travel to Tofino by vehicle and then they would paddle the final 15 miles by canoe. They decided to trailer the redeemed canoe to Tofino and have a group paddle it from there to Ahousaht. The welcome home was absolutely unbelievable. Hundreds of people gathered on the beach as they approached. The canoes lined up facing the shore. Eagles were swooping over the water and calling as my son and I, dressed in our traditional regalia, stood up in the canoe and sang a prayer song. Welcomed Home A hooyi - Peace Song (in regalia)
Wayi! Smgyigyet. Sigidm Hana‘nax. Likagigyet. Mangigyet. Ada Txa‘nii K‘abawaalksik. Dilth Txa‘ni ngyeda galts‘ap Ahousat. Ada K‘abatgüüłk. Sm‘ooygit We Na Mooth Gybau De waayu. Gits‘mk‘eelm Lax Łgu‘alaams di Wil ‗waatgu. Ada Laxibu Di
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P‘deegu. Ada Ni Waaps We Na Mooth Gybau Wil Ksi‘waatgu. Tsimpsian.38 \
I then asked the community to listen to the request of the group.
I am very happy to be here. I am very happy that you all came. Chiefs of Ahousaht: Thank you for allowing us to travel through your waters to come to your shore. I have brought back to you the people you have sent to Esperanza. Esperanza is within the Ehattesaht Territory and is known by them as, Kley mux suu, which refers to your liver. The liver cleanses your blood; it helps purify your blood by filtering out harmful substances. This has always being the traditional role of Kley mux suu, and continues to be. It has always been a pleasure of the Esperanza staff to welcome individuals and families from your community–to witness them rebuild their spirits and see a sense of direction and hope return back into their lives. It has always being a blessing to witness the restoration of relationships between the parents and their children and between the husbands and wives. This is what I have witnessed—this restored group of families—go through. When they first came, there was anger and frustration, blaming and closed down spirits. But that gradually began to change as the weeks rolled by. Soon we were beginning to see that they were realizing that there is a problem and that they were the only ones that could deal with the issues in their lives. They began to do the work. I have had the pleasure of doing several one-on-ones and doing a Bible study with them. However, the Bible studies were more lessons to get them to think about whom Naas is, our Creator, Hathla-pii Hawayith. About how much more fulfilling life can be when you get to know our Creator more intimately. It was good to see them have their disappointments and then work them through. When they first came, they were calling each other by their given names; in this past week it changed into AUNTY, UNCLE, GRANDPA, GRANDMA – showing the change-over to respecting and honouring Translation: Now. Chiefs or High-ranking people; All Honoured Women, Council members of the Chief, Persons in line for Chieftainship, all the Princes, People of Ahousat, all the children. I am We Na Mooth Gybau De Waayu. I am from Lax Lgu‘alaams. My Crest is _______. My House is _________. My nation is Tsimpsian. 38
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―family‖ AND, showing their desire TO BE FAMILY. They were the ones that developed the program as their needs were being met. Community/Nation (Nuu-chah-nulth), I stand in this chu putz, (dug out canoe) Hilth hya chyst, that has a story of failure to it that was restored by this group you sent to Esperanza. Now it represents success; it has a future of servicing at Esperanza for others that are searching for their ―identities‖ as a people of the coast. For us, It is a symbol of restoration of your community of Ahousaht; the restoration of all your tribes that make up the great Nuu-chah-nulth nation. It is a symbol of identity that has returned to this group that want to return home.39 It is a symbol of their hard work that was put into it that will be a benefit to you as you continue to move forward in restoration of your community. It is a symbol of community–the ability to work together; to do whatever it takes to accomplish a goal set out before them–a symbol of respect for you as their leaders. It is a symbol of a created work that will move people; showing that we have a Creator that can move a people into the right direction; in the right way. It is a symbol of a new beginning–that I pray will continue here in your home. You have asked them to come to Kley mux suu and remove the harmful substances from their lives and in their humbleness they are doing that, because their identity is also here (Ahousaht). You have before you future leaders/pioneers that could help restore others within your community, because they have being there and will make the best counselors in understanding what it will take to make this kind of change. You have before you leaders and pioneers that could help other nations and tribes; that will bring honour and blessings to your nation. Most important, in their humbleness they have called on Naas, Wai Kash Naas, Hathla-pii Haway-ith. In the humbleness that this group has displayed while in Kley mux suu, I ask that you will hear them out; they have two speakers that will speak on their behalf. Chuu, Symdoi-iks suut nuun, Kleco, Kleco.
Before the group speakers could ask for permission to return to their homes the beach keeper, Bill George, stood on the beach and welcomed them home. He saved them the potential shame of having to ask permission to return. After many hugs and warm greetings the community put on a feast for the returning people. 39
This canoe will be present in Israel for the WCGIP.
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The dancing and singing and celebration lasted into the wee hours of the morning. What a joy it was to see heads held high in worship and celebration. A Final Word: Ha houpa –Teachings
Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls (Jeremiah 6:16).
As a young Christian woman seeking to understand and know who I was in Christ and what I was supposed to do, I sought guidance from the other Christian people around me. While I was in a youth camp program of NAIM, called Trails, I approached one of the counsellors. I observed him to be an approachable man that knew the Lord. I asked him if I had to give up my being an Indian to be a Christian. I wondered out loud about my culture, whether it was acceptable. In those early days of being a ―recycled‖ 40 adult Christian, I was willing to give up anything in order to conform to a Born-Again Christian. If he had said, ―Oh yes dear, what you have to do is give up all your traditions, those old ways and go this way,‖ I would have. I would have. I was searching and willing to give up the evil in me. I perceived this evil to be from within the heritage of my mother‘s family. But with wisdom I didn‘t understand then, he said to me, ―Look into your culture, look into your history, find where God revealed himself to your people.‖ He gave me an assignment and I was looking for an excuse! (I think I was looking for an excuse to give up my mother‘s family heritage, an excuse not to be who I was created to be.) Imagine that…looking to be someone I am not, looking to live a lie and to deny my Creator as his creation, to please others and not to please God. Talk about the wrong set of values. Wow! What wisdom and good Ha houpa (council) this man of God provided. I often look now at this as a pivotal moment in my Recycled because as a kid I accepted Jesus as personal saviour and got mad at him when I didn‘t get the specific result I was looking for when I wanted it, typical eh! 40
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life. Here was a white evangelical Christian man/missionary, a real power figure in my path, pointing to where I had come from for the answer and not standing there saying, go the other way. I reflect on this time and marvel at his lack of fear, his casual demeanor and mostly at his confidence. He had confidence that God would show me what I needed to know about Himself, without the help of an interpreter, save the Holy Spirit. He had confidence to know that God transcends culture and that ―If you seek me with all your heart you will find me.‖ Well that was almost twenty years ago now and it has taken me a long time to fully embrace this assignment with my heart and my head. I am still learning the ways of God. His ways are higher than mine and I have such a long way to go. I am moving along in this direction with confidence now as I examine the scriptures and learn that other people of indigenous ancestry are recognizing the same scriptures with the same meaning.41 I am learning from the oral and written work of our elders and leaders, from the Ahousaht experience, that there is more to the Nuu-chah-nulth teaching than a current political agenda and that the current political agendas has it roots in past injustices that need reconciliation.42
Reg Yates, Chosen (Cannington, Australia: Khesed Publishing, 2001), 15. 42 Editor‘s note: this article has been substantially shortened from the original presentation. 41
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BOARDING SCHOOL HEALING PROJECT Andrea Smith
Introduction Beginning in the 1800s, American Indian children were forced to attend Christian and U.S. government-run boarding schools as a matter of state policy. The idea originated in the 1600's when John Eliot, Puritan missionary in Massachusetts, erected ―praying towns‖ for Indians. Eliot separated them from their communities to receive Christian ―civilizing‖ instruction. However, colonists soon concluded that children should be targeted for these efforts, because adults were too set in their ways to become Christianized. Jesuit priests also developed schools for Indian children along the St. Lawrence River. The Boarding School System The boarding school system became more formalized under Grants‘ Peace Policy of 1869/1870 with the goal of turning over the administration of reservations to Christian denominations. Congress set aside funds to erect school facilities to be run by churches and missionary societies. These were a combination of day and boarding schools. In 1879, the first off-reservation boarding school, Carlisle Indian School, was founded by Richard Pratt in Pennsylvania. He argued that as long as boarding schools were primarily situated on reservations it was too easy for children to run away. Also, the efforts to assimilate would be reversed upon returning to their families during the summer. He proposed children should be taken far from their homes at an early age and not returned until they were young adults. By 1909, twenty-five offreservation boarding schools, one hundred fifty-seven onreservation, and three hundred and seven day schools were in operation.1 Eventually, more than 100,000 children were forced into attendance. The stated rationale of the policy was to ―Kill the Indian and save the man.‖ Around 1935, during the period of ―Indian Reorganization‖ where Commissioner John Collier sought David Wallace Adams, Education for Extinction (Topeka: University of Kansas Press, 1995). 1
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to reform Indian policy, most off-reservation boarding schools closed. Those that remained became less overtly assimilationist. Today, there are eight off-reservation boarding schools and fiftytwo federal BIA on-reservation boarding schools still open.2 Interestingly, Richard Pratt was actually a ―friend of the Indians.‖ U.S. colonists attempting to end Native control over their land base generally came up with two policies to address the ―Indian problem.‖ Some sectors advocated outright physical extermination of Native peoples. Meanwhile, the ―friends‖ of the Indians advocated cultural rather than physical genocide. Carl Schurz, a former Commissioner of Indian Affairs, concluded that Native peoples had ―this stern alternative: extermination or civilization.‖3 Philadelphia lawyer Henry Pancoast advocated a similar policy in 1882: ―We must either butcher them or civilize them, and what we do we must do quickly.‖4 When Pratt founded off-reservation boarding schools, he espoused a ―more sensitive‖ attitude. ―Transfer the savage-born infant to the surroundings of civilization, and he will grow to possess a civilized language and habit.‖5 He modeled Carlisle on a school in Ft. Marion Prison in Florida where from 1875-1878 seventy-two Native prisoners of war were held. He had developed a variety of programs designed to encourage these prisoners to assimilate into white society. From this experience, Pratt developed a plan to separate children from their parents with assimilation as the goal. Of course, because of the racism in the U.S., Native peoples could never really assimilate. Instead, the consequence of this policy was to assimilate to the bottom of the U.S. socioeconomic ladder. The off-reservation schools are Wahpeton, Pierre, and Flandreau in South Dakota; Talequah and Anadarko in Oklahoma; Salem, Oregon; Riverside, California; and Santa Fe, New Mexico. See Gayle Raymer, ―Indian Boarding Schools: Tools of Forced Assimilation, 1870 – 1934,‖ http://www.humboldt.edu/~go1/kellogg/boardingschools.html 3 Adams, Educated for Extinction. 4 Ibid. 5 Richard Pratt, ―The Advantages of Mingling with Whites‖ in Americanizing the American Indian: Writings by the ―Friends of the Indians:‖ 1880-1990, ed. by Francis Prucha (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1973), 260-271. 2
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For the most part, schools primarily prepared Native boys for manual labor or farming, and Native girls for domestic work. Children were also leased out involuntarily as menial labor to white homes during the summers, rather than sent back home. Indian girls learned ―useful‖ skills such as ironing, sewing, washing, serving raw oysters at cocktail parties, and making attractive flower arrangements in order to transform them into middle-class housewives.6 As K. Tsianina Lomawaima points out, very few Native women were ever in a position to use these skills or become housewives. She states: An ideological rationale more fully accounts for domesticity training: it was training in dispossession under the guise of domesticity, developing a habitus shaped by the messages of subservience and one's proper place.7
Thus, the primary intention was to inculcate patriarchal norms into Native communities so that women would lose their places of leadership. For some colonists, cultural genocide seemed more cost-effective than physical genocide. Carl Schurz, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, concluded that it would cost a million dollars to kill an Indian in warfare, whereas it cost only $1,200 to school an Indian child for eight years. Secretary of the Interior Henry Teller argued that it would cost $22 million to wage war against Indians over a ten-year period, but less than a quarter of that amount to educate 30,000 children for a year.8 Consequently, administrators of these schools ran them as inexpensively as possible. Children were given inadequate food and medical care, and residences overcrowded. Children died from starvation and disease. In addition, they were often forced to do gruelling work to raise monies for the schools and salaries for the teachers and administrators. Attendance was mandatory. Parents who resisted this policy were imprisoned. For instance, Richard Trennart, ―Educating Indian Girls at Non-reservation Boarding Schools, 1878-1920,‖ in Way We Lived, edited by Frederick Binder and David Reimers (Lexington: DC Heath and Company, 1982), 44-58. 7 K. Tsianina Lomawaima, They Called It Prairie Light (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1994). 8 Adams, Educated for Extinction. 6
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in 1895, nineteen Hopi men were in Alcatraz for refusing to send their children to boarding schools.9 The children were forced also to worship as Christians and speak English, since Native traditions and languages were prohibited.10 Randy Fred (Tseshaht), a student at Alberni Indian Residential School in Canada, says the children began to mimic the abuse they had experienced.11 While not all Native people viewed their boarding school experiences as negative, or experienced physical abuse, ―without parental love and without parental role models students were not adequately equipped to fit into mainstream society.‖12 Boarding schools refused to investigate rampant abuse, even when teachers were publicly accused by their students. Books on U.S. boarding schools do not document the more extreme atrocities that have been documented in Canada.13 Our project was formed to begin documenting these abuses. Canada developed a similar system in the form of the residential school system during the years of 1879-1986. In 1996, the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples issued a report documenting abuses in residential schools. ―Children were frequently beaten severely with whips, rods and fists, chained and shackled, bound hand and foot and locked in closets, basements, and bathrooms, and had their heads shaved or hair closely cropped.‖14 According to students at the Mohawk Institute at Brantford, Ontario: Wendy Holliday, ―Hopi History: The Story of Alcatraz Prisoners,‖ (Hopi Cultural Preservation Office, 1998), available at http://www.nps.gov/alcatraz/tours/hopi/hopi-h1m 10 Binder and Reimers, The Way We Lived. 11 Celia Haig-Brown, Resistance and Renewal (Vancouver: Tilacrum, 1988). 12 Ibid. 13 Carol Adams, Neither Man Nor Beast (New York: Continuum, 1994); Lomawaima, They Called It Prairie Light; Brenda Child, Boarding School Seasons (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1998); and, Devon Mihesuah, Cultivating the Rosebuds (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1993). 14 Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, 1991, #1786; http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/ch/rcap/sg/sg31_e.html#104 9
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I have seen Indian children having their faces rubbed in human excrement...the normal punishment for bedwetters ...was to have his face rubbed in his own urine, and for those who tried to escape, nearly all were caught and brought back to face the music. They were forced to run a gauntlet where they were struck with anything that was at hand.15
Allegations have been made by boarding school survivors that grounds of several schools were found to contain unmarked graveyards of murdered babies born to Native girls who had been raped by priests and other church officials at the school.16 By 2001, 16,000 Native peoples were projected to begin a legal claim against the churches or government (which is seventeen percent of living residential school alumni). Liability could run into billions of dollars, threatening some churches with bankruptcy.17 While the Canadian government and some Canadian churches have taken minimal steps in addressing their involvement, the U.S government has not assumed responsibility for this policy of genocide. For instance, when noted Native journalist Tim Giago of Rosebud, South Dakota, wrote a book of poetry that addressed his nine-year history of abuse he in Red Cloud Indian School, the priests allegedly expunged his records from the school and denied that he had attended the institution for more than six months. They completely expunged the records of another student who had been there 12 years, denying he had attended.18 Only in the past two years have U.S. churches made any effort to address this problem. Both the United Church of Christ and the United Methodist Church have passed resolutions recognizing the harms resulting from boarding schools. The reason for this lack of acknowledgment on the part of the U.S. government and churches is that these abuses are not as well-documented in the U.S. However, in working on this issue, I have heard of many Ibid. Suzanne Fournier, ―Gatherers Mark School's Grim Litany of Death,‖ in The Province (June 4 1996). 17 James Brooke, ―Indian Lawsuits on School Abuse May Bankrupt Canada Churches,‖ New York Times, November 2 (2000): A1. 18 Tim Giago, ―Catholic Church Can't Erase Sins of the Past,‖ Indian Country Today (December 15 1994), A4. 15 16
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complaints about current sexual abuse in boarding schools; many survivors may be filing suit in the near future. Boarding Schools and Human Rights Violations Abuses in U.S. and Canadian boarding schools clearly violated a number of human rights legal standards, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1976); the Draft Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (1994); the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948); Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (1951); and Convention on the Rights of the Child (1990). Currently, human rights violations can be filed with the UN for events that take place after the treaty entered into force. However, exceptions are made if the event has on-going effects. In the case of boarding schools, it is clear that Native communities continue to suffer devastating, on-going effects as the result of these policies; including physical, sexual, and emotional violence; unemployment and underemployment; increased suicide rates and substance abuse; loss of language and of religious/cultural traditions; increased depression and post-traumatic stress disorder; and increased child abuse. Consequently, it is our contention that the U.S. should be required to make reparations for the continuing effects of these human rights violations. After Father Harold McIntee from St Joseph's residential school on the Alkali Lake reserve in British Columbia was convicted of sexual abuse in 1989; two of his victims were later convicted of sexual abuse charges. The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Affairs made the link between residential schools and current dysfunction in Native communities: Churches . . . share responsibility with government for the consequences of residential schools [including] … individual cases of physical and sexual abuse [and] … the broader issue of cultural impacts: ... the loss of language through forced English speaking, the loss of traditional ways of being on the land, the loss of parenting skills through the absence of four or five generations of children from Native communities, and the learned behaviour of despising Native identity.19 19
Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, op. cit.
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The Boarding School Healing Project was founded in the U.S. in 2000 to help build a movement to demand reparations for boarding school abuses. Such a project has important implications for addressing sexual violence in communities of color and for supporting reparations struggles on a global scale. The Boarding School Healing Project The Boarding School Healing Project [BSHP] is a coalition of several Native and allied organizations which seek to document abuses so Native communities can begin healing from boarding school abuses and demand justice from the U.S. government and churches. The four components of the project are healing, education, documentation, and accountability. Healing The primary goal of the project is to provide healing resources for survivors of abuse and trauma. Gerry Oleman of the Provincial Residential School Project in Vancouver reports that twenty-two of the first men who disclosed sexual abuse and filed suit against Canadian residential schools in 1998 committed suicide. Armed with this information, the BSHP concluded that a healing apparatus had to be put in place first, so when the issue is publicly discussed, survivors have support. The project has started developing support groups on reservations. Education An education program to encourage people to participate in the documentation/accountability process must also be developed. The BSHP holds multi-media educational events in interested communities to inform communities about the project, the documentation process, and resources for healing. Documentation The BSHP is relying on a research action model to do the documentation of boarding school abuses. Researchers are recruited and trained from the community. Interviewees are interviewed in a two-part process to give people time to reflect on their experiences and the effects on their lives. This project is systematically ensuring that there are participants from all boarding schools and reservations in South Dakota represented. For participants who are willing, we are video-documenting the interviews so that we can compile them into educational videos NAIITS
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for Native communities in other areas. So far the human rights violations we have documented include the following: Religious/Cultural Suppression Malnutrition Inadequate Medical Care Physical Abuses Sexual Abuse Forced Labor Deaths in Schools Accountability The BSHP‘s strategy is to pursue a collective rather than individual remedy. Its focus is to develop strategies that will empower communities as a collective and will fundamentally challenge the colonial relationships the U.S. government and churches have with Native nations. However, the organization does attempt to provide legal advocacy and training to people who wish to pursue legal strategies, particularly for current boarding school abuses. In Canada, accountability for boarding school abuses has taken the form of individual lawsuits. However, this strategy has led to individualized, rather than group, struggle. Likewise the compensation, a relatively small amount per individual [up to 2007], does not do justice to the oppression and injury Native peoples suffered. In the U.S. activists with the BSHP and other groups are concluding that what we ask for is critical. What are the demands that will fundamentally challenge the economic and political status quo? Do we ask for land rather than monies? Should we call for repeals of repressive legislation that undermines the sovereignty of Native nations? Part of the organizing work itself is working with Native peoples to develop collective and creative demands that further sovereignty struggles. By holding the U.S. government and U.S. churches accountable, Native peoples have an opportunity to demand adequate funding for healing services. Survivors and activists can also pressure the U.S. government to support language and cultural revitalization programs. It is critically important to make these demands now for the U.S. government is cutting triballyNAIITS
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controlled education and social services programs while state governments are increasingly supporting English-only laws which threaten the survival of Indigenous languages. Nevertheless, since Native peoples are such a small percentage of the total population, they cannot be under any illusion that they can win a successful campaign on their own. Coalition building is essential in this struggle. As I have argued elsewhere, Native peoples have led some of the most significant victories against multinational corporations and governments through creative coalition-building, such as the successful struggles against Kerr Mc-Gee in Oklahoma and Exxon in Wisconsin.20 Consequently, the BSHP held a joint strategy session with activists in African American reparations struggles in 2004 to begin building relations for a stronger united front. For the reparations movement to be successful, national struggles must be simultaneously internationalized and pressure must be brought to bear on the government, but the news about our efforts to struggle against U.S. policies will not reach activists in other countries unless we get that news to them ourselves. If we can expose U.S. racist policies to international activists abroad, they‘ll have ammunition to embarrass the U.S. and challenge its claim that it is the protector of democracy abroad. Doug McAdam argues that the successes racial justice activists have achieved have been in large part because the government wanted to avoid embarrassment in the global arena.21 African American activists globalized the struggle, such as William Patterson who brought charges of genocide against the United States to the United Nations. We should continue this legacy and remember that white supremacy is a global problem requiring a global response. We should also frame the issue of reparations as a human rights issue rather than as a civil rights issue. By that I mean, human Andrea Smith, ―Bible, Gender and Nationalism in American Indian and Christian Right Activism‖ (Santa Cruz: University of CaliforniaSanta Cruz, 2002). 21 Doug McAdam, Political Process and the Development of Black Insurgency, 1930-1970, Second ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1982). 20
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rights are those rights seen under international law to be inalienable and not dependent on any particular government structure. When we limit our struggles to ―constitutional protections‖ we forget that the constitution states that a black person is 3/5 of a person. Furthermore, to rely solely on constitutional framework does not allow us to hold the U.S. government accountable for gross human rights violations of people of color. Of course, critics will argue that the United States does not listen to the United Nations. But that is precisely the struggle, to force the United States to be accountable to principles other than its own claims to power. The BSHP contributes also a gendered perspective to reparations struggles. That is, the sexual violence perpetrated by slave masters and by boarding school officials constitutes, in effect, state-sanctioned human rights violations. As a result of this systematic and long-term abuse, sexual and other forms of gender violence have been internalized within African and Native American communities. Thus, our challenge is to create a strategy that addresses an insidious colonial legacy—violence within our communities. This project also highlights the importance of analyzing the interrelatedness of white supremacy with Christian imperialism. The reality has been that, for Native peoples in particular, there has never been a separation of church and state. Grant‘s Peace Policy of 1869 turned over Indian reservations to church denominations for administrative control and Native religious traditions were banned. Native peoples still not have constitutional protection for their spiritual practices.22 Colonists saw the cultural assimilation and missionization processes as part of the same project. One reason was that, from their point of view, Indians not only lacked the Scripture, they lacked the language that would allow them to comprehend God. Jonathan Edwards complained: "The Indian languages are Andrea Smith, Sacred Sites, Sacred Rites (New York: National Council of Churches, 1998); Jace Weaver, ―Losing My Religion,‖ in Jace Weaver, ed., Unforgotten Gods: Native American Religious Identity (Maryknoll: Orbis, 1998). 22
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extremely barbarous and barren, and very ill fitted for communicating things moral and divine, or even things speculative and abstract. In short, they are wholly unfit for a people possessed of civilization, knowledge, and refinement."23 Missionaries also complained that Indigenous languages were unable to communicate the concepts of ―Lord, Saviour, salvation, sinner, justice, condemnation, faith, repentance, justification, adoption, sanctification, grace, glory, and heaven."24 It was not sufficient, therefore, simply to have Scriptures; the Scriptures must be in a suitable language—and that language happened to be English. In the colonial imaginary to truly be Christian is to be white. Thus, any struggle to dismantle white supremacy needs to incorporate a critique of the complicity of Christian imperialism in its analysis. Role of Churches On the one hand, churches have been complicit in the genocide of Native peoples. We noted that some the churches involved in boarding schools have more recently become allies in sovereignty struggles; however, lawsuits were alienating their support. So, we decided to pursue the strategy of instead of suing churches, first attempting to work with them to get them to proactively work for justice for boarding school survivors and side with them in our struggle for reparations from the U.S. government. So far, the United Methodist Church and the United Church of Christ have passed resolutions in support of reparations for Native peoples. Many evangelical churches have not been involved in boarding schools. Some use this as a proselytizing strategy. Unfortunately, many of these churches are also not allies on sovereignty struggles today. Still, there has been some support from evangelical churches, particularly in Canada. The key is to tie this to a larger contemporary justice agenda for Native people.
Jonathan Edwards, The Works of Jonathon Edwards, vol. 1 (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1998). 24 Ibid. 23
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Conclusion The effects of boarding school abuses continue to play out largely because these abuses have not been acknowledged or addressed by the larger society. Consequently, silence continues preventing people from seeking support and healing from intergenerational trauma. Individualizing trauma contributes to increased shame and self-blame. If boarding school policies and their impact were recognized as human rights violations, some of the shame would be removed, and communities could begin to heal. We are already seeing the results of such work in Canada. Documenting and then articulating boarding school abuses from a reparations framework can be beneficial for all peoples, not just Indigenous people. A variety of platforms have been developed under the rubric of ―reparations,‖ but not all challenge the economic structures that keep people of color oppressed nor serve to transform institutionalized structures of white supremacy. Reparations as a radical movement, however, require us to formulate demands that fundamentally challenge the global economic system. To make such radical demands effectively, it is clear that we need a global reparations movement that unites all colonized peoples.
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SECTION II Related Paper This section of Volume 5 of the NAIITS Journal consists of one paper on reconciliation. It was not presented at the conference.
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A NATIVE CHRISTIAN MATRIARCHAL VIEW of RECONCILIATION: An Exegetical Review of Romans 5: 6-8 Liz Levesque
Introduction One night I had a dream. I walked into an auditorium where two men were standing on a stage. I found one of the theatre-like seats and sat down. I nodded to another Indian couple I knew but they were the only ones in the room I recognized. The tall white man on the stage was crying. He was expressing deep regret for the past 500 years of colonization to the short Indian man. Both of them wore nice suits. The Indian man had a look of deep concern on his face. He in turn also expressed deep regret for the past 500 years of conflict. As the white man had apologized on behalf of all white people for this conflict, so did the Indian man apologize on behalf of all Indians. He told the man that Indian people were responsible too and that we should all be sorry for what had been done. After all the apologies were made and received, the two men hugged. Tears were dried with tissues in boxes held by women standing to the side of the stage. Many words of praise went up to Jesus. The men on the stage as well as the people in the audience seemed relieved. Slowly, everyone filed out of the auditorium and went home. I woke up from the dream feeling disturbed. I wondered for a moment why the dream had bothered me so much. It all seemed too easy. Apologize for everyone, cry a few tears, hug, and go home. I couldn‘t buy into this definition of reconciliation no matter how sincere the participants. I went to the Scriptures and began to pray and look for a certain passage. When I found it this is what I read: You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.
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But, God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:6-8)
What, if anything, does this passage have to do with my dream of the platform reconciliation? I had to think long and hard about this question to find answer that would satisfy me. So, I wrote this paper in order to try and give an explanation to the dream, and to a question that I hear other people asking. Why Attempt Reconciliation? Those People Will Never Change! Why should anyone go to the time and trouble of reconciliation when the participants are either seem so phony and two faced you can‘t stand it or so angry and enraged that it just turns into hours of the blame game? Why bother at all? Why attempt an endeavour that usually plays itself out in several scenarios that seriously miss the mark? The first scenario, where the two parties have lofty ambitions and unrealistic expectations about getting to the nitty-gritty of the conflict, often blows up in everyone‘s face. The Indians report that when they bring up their list of grievances—500 years worth—the whites get defensive and start firing back with ―your people weren‘t perfect either, look what they did to us!‖ A ping pong match of historic wrongs gets played out across the table and soon everyone throws up their hands saying, ―This is pointless!‖ Participants go home hurt and disgusted vowing to ―never do this again.‖ The second scenario, the platform reconciliation, is also to be pitied. It begins with a generic explanation of historic wrongs and glosses over the fact that an entire race of red people was systematically exterminated from the face of the earth. There is no acknowledgement of this fact nor the devastating consequences internalized for generations by white culture (partial extermination of conscience, fractured minds, unexplained guilt feelings). The society in general is disturbed and no one can figure out why. Indians know why. It‘s because the blood, both white and Indian, cries out for justice and receives none (Gen. 4:10). The insurmountable and catastrophic losses on both sides are summarily dismissed in favor of an apology, handshake, hug and tears. Justice can never be accomplished while these platform reconciliations continue in their present form. NAIITS
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I believe the participants in these reconciliations are absolutely sincere and well intentioned. They come to these events filled with faith and hope. But, neither type of scenario will ever bring a fulfilling resolution to the problem. Participants cannot hope to solve a 500 year history of wrong doing by promising to take a million and go their own way, avoid each other completely after the event, worship in their ―own‖ churches or new gatherings (separate but equal), be civil at inter-racial gatherings, not get in each other‘s political or spiritual space, apologize profusely with the proviso ―does this offend you?‖ or treat each other nicely with painted on smiles. One cannot ―just be nice‖ when one is seething under the surface with anger and rage. None of this constitutes reconciliation in the Biblical sense. It may just be smoke and mirrors. For many, it‘s not the real deal. Indian culture, like Japanese, is traditionally, a face saving culture. In public, we are supposed to cover up what we ―really‖ think and feel about a situation in order to form alliances. But privately, we anger and grieve with issues that continue to haunt us. I can‘t keep going on like this and I know others who feel just as shredded. Is it possible that the Biblical value of reconciliation spelled out in Romans 5:6-8 can show us a way out? There is a good chance, if we use the text as the core of an approach to reconciliation that begins with a fundamental confession. Human beings cannot be good all the live long day and cannot promise future goodness. The good that we want to do we cannot seem to do. The bad that we don‘t want to do we end up doing (Rom. 7:14-24). We are messed up people. We are broken and profoundly flawed. But, God knows this. He is looking for broken people to do his work of reconciliation. He broke His only Son to show us the way. Selu and Her Children: A Broken Approach to Reconciliation A reconciliation story is told by the Cherokee concerning their primary matriarchal figure named Selu. She embodies everything we know about the Creator in the feminine sense. This is a very difficult concept for Western theologians to grasp—the sense that the Creator of the Universe is a ―bi-gender
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duality.‖1 If you can get your head wrapped around the fact that males and females were made in the image and likeness of God (Gen.1:27), then it is not too much of a stretch to accept the Cherokee notion of God‘s feminine side operating in earth‘s history (Prov. 8: 1-3). In the story, Selu has two boys who are hungry. She goes to the storehouse with a basket and brings it back full of corn and beans. Her boys were never allowed in the storehouse. One day they follow her and see that the corn and beans come from the rubbing of her stomach and armpits. They decide she is a witch and plan to kill her. Before they kill her, she sees their intent, and tells them what to do with her dead body in order that they can continue to get more corn. After the dirty deed is done, they cut off her head, attach it to the roof of the house facing west, and clear seven spots on the ground in front of the house. Then they drag her broken body seven times around the circle and wherever her blood falls on the ground, corn springs up.2 This story fits perfectly with Romans 5:6-8. Two little boys misinterpret their mother‘s power, assuming the worst about her. Their assumption destroys the relationship. It terminates it. But, her grace-filled and forgiving attitude wins out over the destruction. She willingly gives up her life for her murderous children. From her death comes life-saving corn for the entire Cherokee Nation. The moral of the story is that no one deserves reconciliation. But, they get it anyway. And, they get it even though they constantly misinterpret other people‘s power as demonic. People are naturally prone to this error because of a lack of fact finding and snap judgments. And yet, these same people are chosen by the Creator to do the delicate work of reconciliation. Why does the Creator continue to demonstrate his faith in us, His love toward us, while we continue to betray each other? The Clara Kidwell, Homer Noley, and George E. Tinker, A Native Theology (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2001). 2 James Mooney, Myths of the Cherokee, Nineteenth Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology 1897-98 (Washington, DC), 3-575 1
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only thing I can think of, for why he hasn‘t wiped us all off the planet, is that he is still hoping, against all reason based on our actions, that if He brings us through the lesson of unconditional love, acceptance and forgiveness enough times, there is a tiny chance that we might just get some of it right. Any approach to the act of reconciliation must start with grace. Reconciliation is God‘s problem. He has to provide the solution. He has decided to extend merit based on nothing that we deserve. We automatically get love, acceptance, forgiveness, respect, honor, and an attitude completely devoid of harsh assumptions and judgments. If the Creator says that we get these things from Him even though we are bad, then isn‘t it time we extend all these gifts to others in the reconciliation process? The Origin of Strawberries: Walking the Path of Reconciliation I want to tell another story from Cherokee elder Marilou Awiakta that illustrates what needs to happen for reconciliation to have a chance and take hold for any length of time. There is this erroneous idea that reconciliation is a one time event. That because Christ died only once that we only have to attempt reconciliation. This is a serious mistake in our thinking. The story begins by describing a man and a woman who live in harmony. Then they begin to quarrel. Neither one can remember what exactly started the quarrel but the argument has been long and tedious. Finally the woman leaves, walking off to the Sun Land in the East to seek comfort. The man follows her, alone and grieving. The woman walks ahead of the man, not looking back. The Creator has pity on the man and asks if his heart is still hardened toward the woman. He says ―it is not.‖ The Creator wants to know if he wants her back. He says, ―yes.‖ So, without asking either party about the nature of the quarrel, or who is to blame or punish, the Creator, intent on healing them, displays different berries along the path where the woman is walking. A patch of huckleberries come into view but the woman passes them by. A clump of blackberries catch her eye but she refuses them. Other trees with fruit and red service berries spring out begging for her attention but she keeps on. Finally a patch of strawberries, the first of its kind ever known, catches her attention and holds it. As she stoops to eat them her face turns NAIITS
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toward the West. The memory of her husband comes back to her. As she sits and eats the desire for her husband becomes stronger. Finally, she gathers more strawberries and walks back along the path to give them to him. He meets her kindly and they go home together.3 I love this story because reconciliation is not about assigning blame so some quarrel can be fixed. It‘s about a lifestyle that involves walking a path toward restoration. Every time the relationship gets broken, everyone gets back on the path and walks it out. Restoring relationship involves using the tools of harmony, responsibility and restitution. Making a Commitment to the Tools of Reconciliation All those involved in the movement to reconcile whites and Indians need to pick up the tools of harmony, responsibility and restitution. These are not easy tools to pick up. Admitting that is the first step in being realistic about the process. Harmony Harmony is a buzz word nowadays with people telling us to ―live in harmony.‖ Easier said than done. I used to think that harmony meant not upsetting the apple cart. That to be harmonious meant to not make waves or to try and get peace at all costs. Now I see harmony as living up to a standard of truth, and a realization that not everyone will agree with you or your version. Males and females disagree. Races disagree. People simply cannot come to a universal agreement on truth. I see harmony as the absence of forcing or threatening people to see it your way. When people are aggressive and insist that others think or act like them, when they pretend to have all the knowledge and answers for everyone, there is no way to have peace. People should just live and let live. Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. Live by your conscience. Be vulnerable in the sense that you can admit you are wrong and don‘t know everything. That kind of humility would really go a long way toward helping people realistically get along. That is because no one is pretending to be someone they are not. The 3
Selu Awiakta, Seeking the Corn–Mothers Wisdom (1993).
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capacity for being real and honest lends itself to create a space where everyone can feel safe about sharing. When participants at reconciliation tables create an environment where judgment of the other is suspended then some fruitful dialogue can begin. Responsibility Responsibility seems like too big a word to use in the reconciliation process. The word is problematic from the get go. It inevitably brings up who did what to whom. And, who is going to bear the brunt of it. This is where a lot of reconciliations break down. But, if we use the story of the strawberries, we can see that the first act of responsibility was assumed by the Creator. He took pity on the man. Our first act of responsibility is to pray to the Creator to have pity on us. The second act of responsibility involved the man‘s heart. More trouble and quarrelling was averted when the husband decided he would not be angry at his wife anymore. The origin of their argument was not worth their separation. We are given a picture of a grieving husband, alone, broken hearted, following, without pressuring his wife, to get her back. This is a man who is emotionally vulnerable and willing to humble himself and change. The lesson is this: Whenever wrongdoing occurs, whenever there is a quarrel, the first thing to do is soften our hearts, start grieving, humble ourselves, walk toward the other party and wait for them to be ready. Follow the other with vulnerability and sorrow. The third act of responsibility involved the woman‘s decision to respond to the healing gift of strawberries from the Creator. In the Indian way, responsibility is based on obligation. The Creator gave her all these berries. They were gifts. She could not keep ignoring them. Responsibility said she had an obligation to receive. That is why she had to stop and eat and be comforted. Once again, the Creator assumed the responsibility for the gift and the comfort. Not only do we need to pray for pity, we need to pray for nourishment and comfort. The bonus about stopping to eat and be comforted is the effect of causing her to remember good things instead of bad about her relationship. The woman ate the sweet and sensual strawberries, felt nourished and calmed, and remembered that her husband was not such a bad guy after all. She became willing to let desire NAIITS
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grow in a wounded heart. And, that desire catapulted her home. She gave up her own ideas of comfort for the Creator‘s ideas. Instead of walking further on the path that took her away, she walked back toward love. She was energized by the thought of being loved again. The third chapter of I Peter gives good advice about living in harmony as husband and wife. It talks about wives having kind behavior toward their husbands so they would be able to believe God at his word. Husbands are to live gently with their wives so their prayers to God don‘t get hindered. There is no room for hard hearts. Harmony of husband and wife means kindness and gentleness if both are to have balance. To be responsible is to treat each other kindly so that when there is a quarrel, there is a have a history of kindness to draw upon. A bank account full of kindness is a good idea. Restitution Restitution is the stabilizing force in relationships that are broken. In the story it comes in the form of strawberries. I don‘t think that most Indian people with a 500 year history of atrocities are going to accept a big flat of strawberries as payment. The story is not trying to trade fruit for theft of land, loss of culture, and a laundry list of other grievances. What the story tells Indian people is this: Our healing is in our foods. Our healing is in the sharing of our foods with kindness. Our healing is not in white notions of restitution. Our healing is in getting our families back together—the reconciliation of husbands, wives, children, grandchildren, aunties, uncles, cousins, nanas and grandpas. Of offering our traditional foods and way of life to white society so they can be healed. Our healing is bound up with the white people. We are all related. All our blood is mixed. In order to heal ourselves we have to be committed to healing white people. We have to pick our strawberries, eat them for ourselves, and turn, and walk back along the path we have traveled to offer them to others. Then we all have to go home and start the process of living harmoniously with each other all over again. When we quarrel, which we inevitably will do, we have to start the process all over again and go out and pick strawberries. NAIITS
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I know there are Indians who are set on getting big cash payments. If that is what they want to pursue I have no quarrel. But, I have seen cash come to Indian country and it doesn‘t fix everything. So, if cash doesn‘t fix everything, then what? I want to look beyond cash. I am not opposed to payments as part of restitution but, I want to look beyond that, way beyond that. The Future of Reconciliation—A Banquet Table with Healing for the Nations I know what is wrong with my dream about the platform reconciliation. I know what is missing. There is no table. There is no feast. The environment was completely sterile. And, all the people in the theatre seats were spectators rather than participants. They were watching a show played out on a stage. I have long had this other dream. I see a huge feast table in a beautiful meadow surrounded by trees and flowering bushes. I am bringing many good dishes to the table along with others. There are loaves of hearth baked bread with every grain imaginable in them; there are cakes and pies of every variety; platters of roasted turkey, chicken, beef, buffalo, moose and venison; cedar planked boards of salmon, vases full of beautiful flower arrangements, pitchers of fresh juices and steins of beer as well as bottles of good wine, both red and white. There is every imaginable vegetable and fruit tray on this table. The table stretvhes for miles. When I see who is sitting down at this table I am amazed to find I don‘t know that many people. Jesus tells a story about a Great Banquet. In the story a man prepares a feast and invites many guests. But, those who are invited begin to make excuses for why they cannot come. The excuses are pretty weak. Jesus tells his servants to go out into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, crippled, lame and blind. Yet, the feasting table is not full. So, his servants have to go out again to the roads and country lanes. The story ends with Jesus saying ―not one of those men who were invited will get a taste of my banquet‖ (Luke 14: 16-24). The Parable of the Great Banquet is a reconciliation story, Jesus style. It speaks to all those who think that reconciliation looks one way, or feels one way, but in reality is something far different. At the center of reconciliation is the feasting table with NAIITS
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the poor, blind, lame, and crippled. In fact, one could say, reconciliation depends on these people being present at the table while those who have been invited are absent. This is a sobering fact. It turns our Christian world upside down. And, it is supposed to because we in North America have no idea what reconciliation is all about. We cannot even begin to imagine what true reconciliation might be because we are so convinced that the counterfeit notion we practice is the real deal. And, so we walk away from these so-called reconciliations feeling really good about ourselves when in fact, we have done nothing very special at all. We have not feasted. We continue to invite the same popular people and would dare not invite the poor, crippled, lame and blind for fear that the others would not show up. We have not dared to risk financial discomfort for a table laden with every good thing for fear that ―it would break the missionary budget.‖ But, in fact, it must cost us all substantially in order for true reconciliation to happen. The only question left is this—―What are we willing to have it cost us right now?‖ The answer to that question will determine the depth of relationship and reconciliation we get.
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SECTION III Annotated Bibliography This section of Volume 5 of the NAIITS Journal introduces a new feature which we hope will be beneficial to the reader. This bibliography concentrates on Jesuit first-contact with First Nations situated along the St. Lawrence and the Great Lakes.
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ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY Jesuits and Indigenous Relations: 1540-1770 Wendy Peterson
Anderson, Emma. 2007. The Betrayal of Faith: the Tragic Journey of a Colonial Native Convert. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Pages: xii-303. Anderson‘s study surely deserves the descriptor ―unique.‖ Her thoroughly researched and captivatingly written story of PierreAntoine Pastedechouan is an attempt ―to glimpse into the interior religious world of a young Innu man in seventeenthcentury Canada‖ (xi). It reveals an intense and passionate commitment to her subject. She describes his story as ―epic in its sweep and international in its setting‖ (9). Her bias is clearly pro-Pastedechouan. This bias often places her in opposition to the Jesuit actions, intentions and methodologies. She labels them ―the fear-filled dictates of the rigid Catholicism with which he [Pastedechouan] had been indoctrinated‖ (2). In spite of her methodical research, she readily admits that many pieces of the original story are inaccessible. She relies on current ethnohistorical techniques to intuit so that she may fill in the blanks of his story (235ff). Missionary-authored narratives have long been academically-suspect. Anderson holds a more enlightened view, believing the truth or reality of the times can be teased from the written materials (238). Pastedechouan is an Innu boy (part of the Algonquin peoples whom the Jesuits called the Montagnais) from the St. Lawrence River valley. The Franciscan Récollets had arrived in his area in 1615. He is taken to France by the Récollets when he is eleven or twelve years old. He returns some five years later (1626) having been baptized, naked, in front of a large congregation in an opulent Roman Catholic Church and having been given the name Pierre-Antoine. His role is to work with the Jesuits who have replaced the Récollets in New France, continue to teach the missionaries his language and serve as a liaison to the Natives. In France he had helped produce a dictionary. It is lost to us along with the one he co-produced with Le Jeune. Anderson identifies the latter priest as ―Pastedechouan‘s nemesis‖ (236). NAIITS
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Pastedechouan‘s return to New France places him between cultures, belonging to neither. He oscillates between devotion to the Roman Catholic God and French culture, and that of his people. In the mind of the Jesuits, particularly Le Jeune (in New France from 1632-1649) to whom Pastedechouan is responsible, the young man enters the dangerous waters of apostasy. Often he is ambivalent and confused. Increasingly he actively articulates his opposition to Christian Catholic beliefs. Le Jeune‘s assessment is revealed in his nicknames for him, ―the Renegade‖ and ―the Apostate‖ (202). Le Jeune ends up bitterly disappointed in this once richly promising convert. Pastedechouan dies from starvation and exposure before he is thirty, alone in the woods, abandoned by the Innu and Jesuit mentors (202). The years of Pastedechouan‘s life, the Jesuit mission and First Nations‘ cultures are retold by Anderson as she reveals and interprets Innu culture in new ways. For example, she speaks of the methods whereby First Nations sought to increase their depleted populations: ―Through complex, violent rituals of adoption and assimilation, these rival cultures sought forcibly to transform war prisoners into living repositories for the souls of their beloved dead, effectively replacing the members of their communities lost to raiding, starvation, and childbirth‖ (4). She does not reference here the reality of devastating European diseases which increased the decimation. Adoption was also used with trading partners, thus the Innu had entrusted Pastedechouan to the French. Allan Greer comments on Pastedechouan‘s life: ―his story challenges accepted narratives of conversion and resistance‖ (back cover). Anderson‘s story and analysis, unsettling as it may be, is ultimately a tale of the collision of language, culture, religion, and expectations. Whether you agree or disagree, her assessments and conclusions of Pastedechouan‘s legacy are thought provoking. An absolute must read. Did I understate that?
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Anderson, Karen. Chain Her by One Foot: the Subjugation of Native Women in Seventeenth-century New France. New York: Routledge, Inc. 1991. Pages: 247 The readings I have done to this point in Jesuit origins and missions have rarely referenced particular women, even as a footnote. The exception would be the Ursuline Order of nuns and their contributions as a minor sub-theme in Horwood‘s text (see below) that highlights the presence and/or contributions of a number of named women from 1530 until the final defeat of New France. Karen Anderson has produced a book about women, particularly the Huron and Montagnais [Innu] women. Men do certainly play a role in her script, as priests, husbands and change agents in century-old social relationships. Here she produces a careful study of Huronian society, which was essentially egalitarian, not entirely ―equal,‖ but where women held high value and status. It was a matriarchal society where the inheritance went to women and clan identity came through the mother. This was forcefully changed to reflect French society; that is, Huronians and Montagnais were ―Christianized.‖ Even those who did not convert shifted to a male dominated structure. Why? Anderson is writing as a feminist theorist. She cites the work of Michael Foucault who ―has contributed a great deal to the task of reconceptualizing power relations and their analysis‖ (6). His theory is that power is not a possession, a thing, but rather a quality of social interaction that is always in play within relations ―according to strategies which are constantly undergoing change‖ (7). This is the frame she employs to study relationships between Huron and Montagnais women and men, social aggression, child-rearing, and other cultural elements from the arrival of the Jesuits until thirty years later. Her hypothesis is that change did indeed occur, and it resulted in loss of status for women. She is interested in the methodologies Jesuits used to effect that change. She relies heavily on the Jesuit Relations (explained below plus the Mealing entry) to understand how the Jesuits depicted the aboriginal women (who were overall slower to accept the Jesuit teachings) and how they counselled husbands, as well as the punishment the Jesuits and French civil authorities bestowed on ―proud, disobedient‖ women. NAIITS
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Anderson begins her study with the story of two converts, spouses, who are to formalize their marriage in a Catholic ceremony since the Jesuits do no recognize them as married before God. The woman has caused no end of problems being ―proud, disobedient and ill-tempered‖ with a violent temper (1). She had been described by a Jesuit as ―a rough wild creature who gives a great deal of trouble‖ to her husband (3). Her behaviour is putting her husband‘s salvation under jeopardy and her anger attracts demons to their dwelling. Now, at the moment of their Euro-style-wedding, she is subdued and obedient. Anderson wants to answer a simple, historically particular, question: What has happened to change her—change them—into docile, obedient wives? How did they come to be de-valued, to de-value themselves and to lose power, thus status? How is it that they became subjected to men? Her answer is troubling. A major component of her work is accomplished by Anderson tracking the references to women in the Jesuit Relations, letters and reports sent by the Superior to France each year and intended for publication in order to solicit funds for the missions. In building her case against the Catholic theology of gender superiority taught to the Natives, Anderson reviews the teachings of Plato and Aristotle. The relevance is that Aristotle influenced Thomas Aquinas. Plato‘s view was more egalitarian (at least at the cosmic level) and Aristotle considered each pregnancy should result in a male child unless something went wrong in the womb. Women are defective beings; males are the ―perfect sex‖ (65). Therefore women are by nature unworthy to rule and incapable of many tasks. These ―tasks‖ were frequently task and obligations that were a part of their culture. Women should be meek, mild and submissive—above all sexually pure. Men are their superiors in the ability to make decisions, the Jesuits taught. ―Christianity provided a very powerful means of tying women and men into a hierarchical ordering of their relationships,‖ she concludes (217). The matrifocal kinship structure is gone. Changes included physical punishment. The Indigenous peoples responded with shock when a French woman was beaten for leaving her husband. They had never heard of prisons. They were appalled when they heard of the death penalty in France, that a people would kill their own people. Cruelty, for them, was NAIITS
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reserved for the enemy (209f). Yet, within thirty years, women would be tied up and put into ―prison‖ (such as a granary in winter with no food or covers) for disobedience. They would bring there children, stripped, before the altar to be whipped. A woman tells of beating her child ―at her breast‖ with a rosary. These are the same people Jesuit Le Jeune had complained: ―These Barbarians cannot bear to have their children punished, not even scolded, … upon the slightest pretext they would take them away from us, before they were educated‖ (160). They had been taught the Jesuit act of self-flagellation (or ―discipline‖) which the Jesuits would administer upon request. The social aggression which had formally been reserved for enemies and prisoners of war, cruel as it was, changed. Now the victims were the women and children, Anderson charges. ―The Huron and Montagnais exchanged one set of delusions for another, one set of unconscious and inadequate reasons for persecuting victims for another set, these ones derived from Christian theology, as it was put into practice during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries‖ (223). This text is an example of social history, cross-cultural analysis and feminist theory at work. Whether or not one agrees with Anderson‘s methodologies or conclusions, her work makes for thought provoking reading. With her emphasis on the Huron and Montagnais women, the sexual mores of the community, and the social roles, she educates along the way. That she is biased against the Jesuits is undeniable. Barthel, Manfred. The Jesuits: History and Legend of the Society of Jesus. Translated by Mark Howson. 1984. New York: William Morrow & Company. 1982. Pages: 324. Barthel, a philosopher, begins his book with a captivating Christmas Day 1948 encounter with his first Jesuit acquaintance, in blockaded and bombed Easter Berlin. It is soon apparent his account of the Jesuits will be a story of the good, the bad, and the ugly. He commences where he is physically: in Germany with the Roman Catholic Church politically intertwined with the German state—which the world will hold them accountable for, although a mea culpa will not be forthcoming for many decades. This is a fair version of Jesuit NAIITS
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history, where Barthel exposes many myths that have become a part of European lore, and writes with slightly irreverent wit. He takes upon himself the task of telling who the Jesuits really are. Their detractors have accused them of myriad murders, kidnappings, the St. Bartholomew‘s Day Massacre, authoring Mein Kampf, and a multitude of vices. Tongue in cheek, he writes: ―The Jesuits, formerly ‗the Pope‘s light cavalry,‘ have been upgraded to the Vatican ‗Rapid Deployment Force,‘ their squadrons presumably in a state of perpetual alert, with one hand on the rosary, the other hand on the ripcord, ready to spring into action the moment the Holy Father picks up the Black telephone‖ (11). Barthel has taken it upon himself to separate the truth from the stereotypes surrounding the Society of Jesus and the men who claim the title Jesuit. He begins with the mission of founder Ignatius Loyola, the principles developed to form the Society and the roles Jesuits undertook. He proceeds to their participation as theologians at the Council of Trent and their task in Germany and the CounterReformation. He moves to the areas of art and science and diplomacy. Jesuit participation in missions to the New World is followed by a discussion of their dissolution and the eventual rebirth: ―alliance between the chalice and the sword‖ (235). That brings the Society to ―the Jesuits today‖ or 1982. In his discussion of Jesuit as missionary, he both supports and questions the axiom ―that Jesuits make the best missionaries‖ (175). In their support, he notes that no one else with their level of education and potential or real position in high society would make the extreme sacrifices required of a missionary. Their ability to endure, embrace even, hardship is legendary. Jesuits left for missions the day before the actual papal approval of their order. When sent to Portuguese colonies to minister to colonists, they couldn‘t resist the Indigenous peoples‘ needs. Francis Xavier‘s enthusiasm is evident when he reports in 1945 of having baptized upwards of ten thousand. Now, how much the baptized comprehended of their new faith is an entirely other issue. Jesuit Lancilloto had his sceptical moments. He charged that most baptized had an ulterior motive: freedom from slavery, promotion, ―a new robe or a turban‖ (178). Regardless, Xavier remains patron saint of Catholic missionaries and with just NAIITS
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cause. After only two years in Japan, the number of Christians expanded to a hundred thousand at century‘s end (181). Five hundred years later, however, Christians are a tiny minority. Barthel recounts the dissolution of the Jesuits in the eighteenth century. His rendition is filled with background material, colour commentary, and dry humour. He traces the beginning of their troubles to a particular politician plus the 1755 earthquake that destroyed Lisbon along with thirty thousand citizens. He weaves in an indiscretion by Portugal‘s king and an angry husband, and concludes with the beginning-of-the-end of the Jesuits. The King of France, hardly unbiased since all Jesuit property would revert to him, Blaise Pascal‘s anti-Jesuit writings, and an anti-Jesuit government oversaw the Order‘s demise after two hundred years of influence over crowns and popes (215ff). The final order was signed by the Pope in 1773. Jesuits were jailed or expelled from France, Portugal, Spain, all the colonies (although a few hung on in Canada because the Bishop there refused to read the King‘s order, although Barthel doesn‘t mention this)—indeed the empire—and the Order dissolved. His ―Most Heretical Majesty‖ Prussian King Frederick permitted Jesuits to remain (231f) as did Catherine of Russia. In spite of the Pope having abolished the Jesuits ―for all eternity;‖ the Jesuits were born again by papal authority in 1814. Nevertheless, over seventy more expulsions, restorations and redissolvements took place in the next fifty years. By the end of Barthel‘s account, the Jesuits have the matter of authenticity challenging them: ―How are our people going to react to our fine speeches about justice and righteousness when they can see that we enjoy a standard of living that is superior, … when all that we do simply reeks of privilege…?‖ asks Jesuit General Arrupe (302). If all history were written as Barthel writes, there would be more students of history. This text is packed with detail, including the bits of humanity that give spirit and spunk to individual lives. Recommended.
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Brodrick, James. The Origin of the Jesuits. Chicago: Loyola Press, 1997. Pages: xi, 274. Originally published in 1940‘s war-torn Britain, Broderick‘s intention was to mark the 400th anniversary of the founding of the Jesuit order. This particular edition was reprinted posthumously by a new publisher. The sequel to the original, The Progress of the Jesuits (1556-1579), appeared in 1947. The author, a Jesuit priest, assumed his books would read by educated laymen (ix) so his Latin quotations are often not translated, nor is a sonnet in Spanish (181). Born in 1891 in Ireland, his own education was in Dublin and London. The strength of Brodrick‘s writing is his ability to put flesh and a human face on each saint. He abhors texts where saints are stripped of their humanity, ―turned into a dull legend‖ (187) and ―buried under the dreary rubbish-heap of pious writers‖ (188, n. 1). His admiration for the early Jesuits is obvious. While his academic research is thorough, his style is devotional and engaging. There is no doubt in Brodrick‘s mind as to why the Roman Catholic Church has granted Loyola and Xavier the status of sainthood. An additional value to the book is its inclusion of quotations, both in text and footnotes, of the writings and even minutes of meetings held in these earliest years of the Society of Jesus. Brodrick is unapologetically biased against Protestants and the ―seductive doctrine‖ (224) of justification by faith alone, a bias that reflects his immersion in the sixteenth century Roman Catholic ethos and out of proportion to the twentieth century ecumenical mood. For example, he speaks of one Fra Agostino who ―publicly embraced Protestantism and died a Lutheran minister, full of years and heresy‖ (66). Surprisingly, he reveals his sentiments which are equally as negative towards Pope Paul IV ―that good hater of all things Spanish‖ (62, cf 49 & 56) who caused much trouble for the Jesuits. He bemoans the fact that the Jesuits also were repeatedly denounced as heretical. Since the death of Loyola in 1556 pre-dates the Jesuit work in North America (which began in what is now Canada in 1611), the greatest value of this text is in gaining a clearer understanding of the ethos and the intentions of the Jesuits, ―the Benjamin of NAIITS
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the religious orders‖ (220), as they eventually made their way to the North American continent, for ―the succour of souls, whether among the faithful or infidel‖ (103). Brodrick mentions on a few occasions the employment of ―a discipline.‖ In a post-Da Vinci Code era, a Roman Catholic may be more circumspect or apologetic mentioning this ritual of self-debasement by scourging oneself with an instrument intended to cause physical pain (148). Brodrick is to be commended for not glossing over many historical acts, such as the numerous ―illegitimate‖ offspring of various archbishops and popes (187 and n. 1). The overall value in this work is in understanding the culture and background from which the Jesuits emerged. The account of Xavier‘s travels in India, China and Japan (chapters 4 & 5) reveal a desire by the Jesuits to adapt to the receiving culture‘s norms plus a naïveté (177) towards worldview and language. They were ahead of their times, yet remained children of their age. In the end, one is left with great admiration for the prayer life, the disciplined asceticism, the genuineness of the early Jesuit vows of poverty, and the complete faith in God exhibited by both Xavier and Loyola and other early Jesuits. Cushner, Nicholas P. Soldiers of God: The Jesuits in Colonial America, 1565-1767. Buffalo, NY: Language Communications/digital, 2002. Pages: xiii, 402. This is an anthropological approach to the Jesuit missions rather than strictly historical, although the former is necessarily embedded in the latter. Cushner begins his text acknowledging that the Jesuits‘ view of Indigenous peoples is through European eyes (xi). The implication is those eyes have a sixteenth to eighteenth century mind interpreting what they saw. However, his caution is that their ―cultural filter might well have so blurred the object as to turn it into something else‖ (xi). Cushner‘s concern is with this question: How, why, and to what degree was the European successful in altering the material culture, the economic activity, social organization, sexual behaviour, and religion of the Native American? (x). His target area is not one isolated band or ―tribe.‖ Rather, his question sweeps across the entire Americas: north, central and south. His contention is that the Jesuits, as first-contact persons, served as NAIITS
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―the bridge between Native American groups and the western culture introduced to the New World‖ (xii). Corollary questions are: ―What did the Jesuits attempt to achieve in the New World?‖ Why were they successful in certain regions, but not in Florida or the vast area of New France (roughly eastern Canada)? Cushner is interested in anthropological issues such as form, meaning and function as understood by both the Jesuit and Native American. This provides impetus for him to dig deeper and ask questions from different angles then those asked by most historians. He wants to know what they each understood with concepts such as nation, king, loyalty, church, sin, etc. (3). He begins with the European cultural influences on the formation of the Jesuits and how that shaped their approach to Indigenous peoples. For example, only twenty Jesuits out of two hundred and sixty eight applications for missions specifically asked to be sent to ―New France‖ (39f). Cushner also speculates as to the factors which affected the selection process. He suggests that extraordinary intelligence and/or administration skills were reserved for Jesuits at home in Europe, while physical vigour and admiration of martyrdom were attributes of a missionary. He notes the influence that missionary letters published at home had on inspiring volunteers, particularly the letters of Francis Xavier and the story of Brébeuf‘s martyrdom. Cushner‘s analysis of the Jesuit withdrawal from missionary activity in Florida is especially insightful. His chapter entitled ―The Beaver and the Fleur de Lis‖ conflicts in some conclusions from other more optimistic and complimentary portrayals of the early Jesuits in New France. What he does well is expose the inability of the newcomers to see the Natives‘ perspective of religion and culture. Horwood, Harold. The Colonial Dream: 1497-176, Canada’s Illustrated Heritage. Toronto: Natural Science of Canada Ltd., 1978. Pages: 128. It would be easy to dismiss this gem as it has the appearance of a light read, a coffee table book. This is reinforced by the lack of footnotes and bibliography, although it is indexed. It was researched and written while Harold Horwood served as writerNAIITS
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in-residence at the University of Ontario. His background of involvement in Newfoundland‘s journey to join Confederation surely colours his lively account of the formation of Canada. The inside front and back covers provide a timeline of important events from 1497 (John Cabot reaches Newfoundland) to 1759 (Battle of Plains of Abraham). The actual text looks back prior to this timeline to note other known and suspected visitors to Canadian shores. It also makes note of the cod fishing industry pursued by a number of nations, although most of these fishermen likely stayed off-shore. The year 1759 is a suspenseful time to stop, leaving the outcome of the final French defeat by the English hanging. The Capitulation of Canada, as the French Jesuits called it, took place the following year. As anticipated by the title of this series, it is well illustrated. There are forty-five illustrations including maps (some fanciful, some deliberately so, so as to misrepresent where explorers had reached and thus claimed territory), portraits, posters, sketches of first encounters with Aboriginals, and scenes depicting Native life and clothing. Many are done after the fact, often incorporating a number of themes. The captions are written by Horwood, frequently with wry humour—and with good cause. The Europe-bound artists incorporated their ethno-centric experience with flights of imagination. An example is one illustration of a ―beaver hunt.‖ The artist obviously had never laid eyes on either a beaver den (depicted as a three story apartment block and with enough beavers to fill a province) or a live beaver. I personally have never seen one carrying a stack of wood or hauling a large stone on its tail (4 & 58). Unfortunately, a number of depictions of the Indigenous peoples are eclectic in clothing and hair styles and are anachronistic. In spite of these shortcomings, the collection serves to ―put faces‖ and images on a world that the written word falls short of describing. The illustrations would be more meaningful if they had actual or approximate dates affixed to them. Horwood treats the Indigenous peoples with respect without devolving into romanticism. His text provides a plethora of little known historical data of the pre-Columbus travelers through to present-day Canadian shores. One example is his discussion on the possibility of one of the tribes in Acadia not being Malecites, but rather the descendants of European fishermen and Mic‘maqs NAIITS
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(43). He does an excellent job of detailed descriptions of the harsh realities of everyday life in the ―New World.‖ However, the New World, apparently, contained much of the old thanks to the French ruling class: fancy French costuming, wigs, formal dances (107f), pillars and gallows, and a strict social order. This text provides insight into warfare raging on and off between French, English, Iroquois, and the ―wiping out‖ of entire Native villages plus both French and English forts/colonies. Of course, history tells us the Europeans just kept rebuilding. For those who criticize Native peoples over war between the nations, early North American history removes the blinders about a more ―civilized‖ Europe. This text ends with the French La Vérendrye family reaching the Rocky Mountains overland, and England effectively gaining the upper hand over France which ended the initial phase of Jesuit mission in North America. Hutchinson, William R. Errand to the World: American Protestant Thought and Foreign missions. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987. Pages: 226. Hutchinson has produced a frank and fair analysis of efforts to Christianize the world. The nuggets in this volume are found embedded in the overall picture Hutchinson draws of Protestant American missionary attitudes and mission controversies from the mid-eighteenth to the latter part of the twentieth century. However, his first chapter includes tributes to early Roman Catholic missionaries to Spanish colonies and to the French colonies of what is now Canada. His praise is directed to their intention to not change Indigenous culture. Perhaps it can be expressed as leaving behind nothing but the gospel, although that would be an overstatement. This needs be seen in light of the sharp contrast to secular contemporaries wanting to take everything, beginning with the gold, and using ―free‖ labour provided by the Indigenous peoples. Hutchinson‘s emphasis is two-fold. He relates the oft-told tale of the sixteenth century Spanish priest Las Casa who chastised secular authorities for systematically and brutally oppressing the peoples in their South American colonies. The author uses him as an example of missionaries who sought to protect NAIITS
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Indigenous peoples. He also makes note of the Jesuit Relations (see Mealing below for more detail) which frequently speak with affection and admiration of ―the Savages‖ with whom they live and seek to convert, ultimately achieving little other than a few martyrs (although it can argued they were not killed because of their faith). But he is not blind to the Catholic faults. He highlights the Franciscan Lois Hennepin who wrote his negative portrayals of ―the Savages‘‖ traits, including their ―too-tolerant‖ view of religion: ―They are incapable of taking away any Person‘s life out of hatred of his Religion‖ (19). In 1697 Hennepin expressed the opinion that ―colleges might be founded to breed up the young Savages in the Christian Faith …‖ (22f). This is a more balanced book than most. Martin Marty. The Christian World: a Global History. New York: Modern Library, 2007. Pages: xxi-262. The value in this text is in the expertise of the author (the University of Chicago has an institute for advanced studies in religion bearing his name). Only such an author could get away with having no footnotes or bibliography in a sweeping overview of ―the Christian world.‖ He covers twenty centuries and six continents (233). There are references on only four pages to Native American mission and culture, while the Jesuits and Canada are each granted seven. What this book offers is conceptual insight in which one may position the Jesuit missions and the colonization of the Indigenous peoples of Canada and U.S.A. into the greater human story—the ―big picture‖ as it were. Marty states, ―through all the tales of Crusades and Inquisitions, creeds and treaties, explorations and retreats, under all the symbols of aggressive power or winning humility, somehow Jesus Christ was at the root and base of thought and action‖ (159). And of course he asks the necessary questions: Whose Jesus Christ? Which Jesus Christ? Those questions lead us back to Jesuit missions and Indigenous interpretations of words, symbols and rituals. Who did Aboriginals think the missionaries said this Jesus was? Settlers and missionaries ―instinctively and intentionally carried over European patterns. This meant that they naturally privileged one religion per one government, NAIITS
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fostering one interpretation of the work and meaning of Jesus Christ as chosen by the one prevailing and usually legally established church‖ (159). Another contribution this book makes to our overall theme is to remind us of the European ethos that impacted the minds, and customs and events that troubled the hearts of the Jesuits. For example, they were well aware of the Europan Protestant and Catholic clash, what Marty calls ―an unholy Christian holy war, which sapped the evangelical and Catholic energies‖ from 1618 to 1648 (119). The protestant factor is particularly fresh in that the French are surrounded in the New World by the old enemy, England. All newcomers, protestor and catholic, seemed to agree on the Native religions: they were savage, pagan and immoral and ―that nothing in the native spiritual expressions was valid, and that their own versions of the Christian replacements had to prevail, still under European national flags and at the expense of other types of Christians‖ (163). Missions in North America, according to Marty, were not a resounding success. By 1787 in the U.S. he can refer to only a dozen Protestant missionaries and very few ―praying Indians‖ (164). Having covered twenty centuries, six continents and having ―traced the story of Christianity across the map and then around the globe;‖ having noted that ―one-third of the people around the globe are identified with Christianity‖ in this twenty-first century, Marty asks the question: ―When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?‖ (236). Recommended. Mealing, S. R., The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents. Carleton Library. Number 7. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart Limited, 1963. Reprint 1969. Pages: xii-156. This is a translation of primary source material by Jesuits— selected letters and reports known as ―Relations‖. These were ―compiled by the Jesuit superior at Quebec and sent to the provincial of the order at Paris‖ (xi). They were intended for publication in France. The majority of the documents were first published between 1632 and 1673. Two hundred years later, 1868, the Canadian Government reprinted them as The Jesuit Relations. ―The most exhaustive‖ edition was published between NAIITS
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1896 and 1901 in Ohio bearing this same title and filling seventythree volumes. The ―Allied Documents‖ reference in the title refers to additional material dated as late, in this particular volume, as a letter in 1788. S.R. Mealing, Carleton University, wrote an informative introduction and inserted other helpful notes for this edition. This little treasure has thirty-two letters/reports presented in five parts: 1. The Beginning of the Jesuit Mission to New France; 2. The Mission to the Hurons; 3. The Martyrdom of Huronia and the Mission to the Iroquois; 4. The Western Missions and the Expansion of New France; and, 5. The Jesuits at Quebec. They are dated from 1611 to 1788. While most are addressed to France, a few are to superiors in Rome and one to the English after the Capitulation of Canada (1760) to England. A quotation from the back cover is worth citing: One of the earliest authentic accounts of European activity in northern North America, the Jesuit Relations describe the heroic enterprise of the Jesuit Order‘s mission to the Hurons and the Iroquois in the late seventeenth century. This edition focuses on the Jesuit mission to the Hurons which culminated in the martyrdom of Fathers Brébeuf and Lalemant and gives a fascinating glimpse of the Great Lakes and Indian culture at the time the white men first came.
The reader will be rewarded with data and insights about the names, locations and alliances between various First Nations (the Jesuits do refer to them as nations; they also use the word Savages), their stoicism in adverse conditions, and a myriad of other fascinating details. Much is also revealed about the Jesuits‘ courage, inability to shake off European and Catholic values, and attitudes towards their potential and realized converts, although the latter were hardly numerous. These letters were written for publication so we do not know how that influenced the writing; yet, they provide first-contact knowledge, perceptions and interpretations of the multitude of First Nations that inhabited land all along the St. Lawrence, Great Lakes, Mississippi and other waterways – a vast stretch of territory that now is claimed by Canada and the United States.
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Moore, James T. Indian and Jesuit: a seventeenth-century encounter. Chicago: Loyola University Press, 1982. Pages: xii-267. Given the Loyola University publisher, it should be noted the author received his divinity training from an Episcopalian seminary. Fascinated with the Jesuits, Moore‘s admiration is evident in his perspective of their being ahead of their time in attitude and practice. On the pragmatic side, he states the Jesuits practiced ―the principle of accommodation, a principle they applied more to themselves than to the Indians‖ (xi). By this he means the Jesuit tenacity to live and travel with a variety of First Nations. The statement also serves to point to the ultimate disappointment, if not failure, of the Jesuit goal to Christianize at least the Huron and Algonquin with whom they spent so much time and travail. A number of the martyrs were co-captors with the Hurons who suffer the same fate. The Jesuits‘ Aristotelian philosophical underpinnings and Thomistic theology permitted the Jesuits to view all humans as inherently good, since they did not function from a presupposition of human depravity. They were more readily able to view the ―Indians‖ positively unless and until proven wrong. Thus, Jesuits found many characteristics to admire in the peoples to whom they sought to minister (compare this to the Puritans). Moore has obviously researched this subject well. He provides a myriad of details not found in other tales of the Jesuits or this era. His attention to detail gives his rendition of the times much colour and helps to locate events in chronological order. At times his details seem to contradict other renditions and therefore need more research for clarification. For example, he notes, with a straight face so to speak, that ―Indian‖ girls were given land if they married a Frenchman, and there were sometimes monetary incentives for the Frenchmen (xi-xii). In most other resources the disapproval of cross-racial marriages by French ―society‖ is highlighted. This particular topic would be interesting to follow up. In another case, Moore records that the work of the Jesuits amongst the Hurons between 1634 and 1650 fared so well they could report a conversion rate of almost ten percent (13). This too seems optimistic in comparison with, for example, Hutchinson‘s more ―Eeoryish‖ attitude. Yet, Moore‘s propensity for detail provides confidence in his story. NAIITS
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Moore, optimistic though he is, cannot be accused of wearing blinders towards the Indigenous peoples. He recounts in gruesome detail the torture techniques of the Iroquois, both women and men (26-29, 160). One is left with profound admiration (or questioning their overzealousness, depending on one‘s perspective) for men such as Isaac Joques who, in spite of having undergone torture including his thumb cut off—which he took in his other hand, held up and ―offered up to thee, my true and living God‖ (26). Two years later he went into Iroquois territory seeking to make a peace agreement (27). What Moore does not record is the European cruelties practiced in the public squares of the French settlements: pillaring, whippings, a law against blasphemy where one‘s tongue could be cut out, and the first official execution in ―Canada,‖ the hanging of a sixteen year old girl for stealing. Nor does he mention the torture of witches and Protestants back ―home‖. Perhaps they ―paled‖ in comparison? [Pun intended.] This book includes a number of examples of contextualization without that label. One Jesuit who went to pursue peace with the Iroquois (one of many temporary peace pacts achieved), did so by approaching the village using the customs of the people (33). Also, a feast was held in honour of Jesus‘ resurrection based on a Huron feast to welcome back a person who had escaped from an enemy. Rather than condemning a dance in honour of the sun, a cross was placed on the pole where a picture of the sun was usually placed (146). Moore includes a chapter on this theme entitled ―Old Customs—New Ways‖ (129-62) and another called ―Transformation of Symbols and Ceremonies‖ (163-186). Sadly, the Jesuits seemed to interpret all the death by European disease and wars as God‘s punishment on the people. Moore quotes Paul Ragueneau who wrote in 1650 ―… thirteen years ago, I had seen it (the river) bordered with large numbers of people of the Algonquin tongue, who knew no God. … Since they have embraced the faith … [God has] made them a prey to miseries, torments, and cruel deaths; in a word, they are a people wiped off from the face of the earth‖ (31). One wonders if there was no sense of ownership for the disasters that have destroyed a people.
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This text provides a wealth of material related not just to Jesuit mission, but to the cultural understandings and customs of the peoples the Jesuits sought to convert. The chronological presentation sorts through the various missions and missionaries, although it is difficult to keep in mind all the comings and goings amongst the thirty-four Indigenous nations/groups, and the twenty-three major missions and fifty named Jesuits. Within this annotated bibliography, this book is a must read. The reader/research will also appreciate the strong bibliography and good endnotes. There are three appendices of particular value: a list of fifty Jesuits with brief biographical sketches, a list of the major Jesuit missions (23), and a list of selected tribes with descriptions and territories of each. He also includes a most helpful map depicting the location of tribes and the missions. A helpful addition would be dating the start of each mission on the map, as well as its termination if applicable. Some missions lived on as settlements and eventually cities under the English. The Native customs detailed and the adaptations made by the missionaries are invaluable as he pulls back the curtain of time. Reff, Daniel T. Plagues, Priests, Demons: Sacred Narratives and the Rise of Christianity in the Old World and the New. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005. Pages: xiii290. Daniel Reff, an anthropologist and ethnohistorian, offers this study of two seemingly dissimilar periods in Christianity: the late Roman Empire and early colonial Mexico. This would not only seem to be an unlikely study, at first glance the subject would not seem to fit into this annotated bibliography. And yet it does. Granted, Reff‘s work is not concerned with the colonies of New France; he is interested in the Spanish contemporaries of the French Jesuits. The former had astounding success while the latter had comparably little—even negligible results. The strategies used in Mexico and a study of the much higher success rate of Christianization of the Indigenous peoples have much to offer when analyzing the French Jesuit missions to the Algonquin, Iroquoian federation, and their near neighbours. NAIITS
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Reff‘s thesis is both the late Roman Empire (150-800) and Mexico (especially 1591 –1660) experienced collapses of empires and endured new infectious diseases that contributed to interest in Christianity and eventual high conversion rates. Plagues led to decimation of populations and to social upheaval including dislocation. Christianity offered a means of coping and finding meaning. Particularly in Mexico, when the Europeans seemed to be immune, the ―Indians‖ attributed this not to acquired immunity from pathogens, but the strength of their God and Saints. Reff goes beyond disease and decimation, comparing institutional/political structures, theological responses, as well as cultural-historical similarities (8). He argues that the Jesuits, with their emphasis on education, were well informed of the literature of the earlier Christians, employing their rhetoric against those who would oppose missionary activity (7). He employs ―the critique of ethnography and ‗constructivism‘ as an analytical framework, researching the contingent factors … that encouraged Jesuit ‗borrowing‘ from early sacred biography and history‖ (5) and their parallel pastoral methods (v). The Mendicants (Franciscans, Dominicans and Augustinians) conducted missionary work in Southern Mexico fifteen years before the Jesuit order formed, baptizing several million (127). Scholars disagree on the figures, but guesstimate between five and fifteen million people died in the years around 1520 and 1550 from various diseases including smallpox and measles (125). Half the Indian population was gone by 1575, and 90% by 1600. Also in the north of Mexico, but a few decades later, entire tribes were lost. This is the area where the Jesuits began mission work in the late sixteenth century. Reff uses 1591-1640 as the era of greatest impact when Jesuits baptized more than four hundred thousand converts in north-western Mexico, establishing dozens of missions (122; and map 161). ―Missions‖ here meant a Jesuit moving into a larger pueblo or settlement of upwards of one hundred families (160). The exploding conversion rate is attributed to a number of factors, including the interpretive role of Indians between priest and convert (orthodoxy, he states, could not be easily controlled, 244), thus an indigenized Christian theology emerged; including a similarity with Indigenous religion of the role saints played.
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As an aside, in northern North American areas reached by the French Jesuits, European diseases also wreaked havoc. Rather than wholesale conversion, Natives often made a direct connection between deaths and the baptismal rites of Roman Catholics, viewing them as sorcery. Thus, the response differed greatly. [See texts by Hutchinson and Moore above]. And a further aside, many of the texts addressing Jesuits in the Americas have much to say about cannibalism. This is the only one I have found that tells about the cannibalism in France in 1572, when Huguenots involuntarily provided the meal for folks in Paris and Lyon following the Saint Bartholomew‘s Day Massacre. Reff‘s contribution to understanding Jesuits in sixteenth and seventeenth century is substantial. His thesis is well supported given the high value Jesuits placed on classical education. This text is insightful as to customs and similarities of northern Mexican religion and Christianity. It deserves a careful reading by historians, anthropologists, and anyone interested in the history of the Roman Empire, the Church or the Americas. The thirty-five page bibliography is invaluable. Wylie, J. A. The Jesuits: Their Moral Maxims, and Plots against Kings, Nations and Churches with Dissertation on Ireland. London: Hamilton, Adams & Co. 1881. Pages: vi-136. As Barthel (above) so adequately illustrates, conspiracy theories about the Jesuits have resounded through the centuries. I have chosen this book as an example. Written with intensity and earnestness, Wylie is convinced that the Jesuits are coconspirators under papal authority to destroy the works of God: Protestantism and England‘s empire. The book I have in hand is an attractively bound hardcover. The inside cover bears a formal sticker that reads ―Dundee Protestant Association, Senior Training Class, Session 18811882, Attendance Prize …‖. The author is Rev. Wylie, LL.D. His praises are sung by the Baptist Magazine, the British Quarterly Review and the Free Church of Scotland. My point is that this is not some small covert group-think, but mainstream anti-Jesuit propaganda. NAIITS
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The book is filled with ‗proof‘ of plots and intrigues, of ignoble intentions and Jesuit misrepresentations of their beliefs and actions. Indeed, they are the very tools of the devil. One of Wylie‘s accusations is that the Jesuits planted members in various Protestant gatherings in order to instigate separatist movements. [Why else would we have so many different denominations?] Jesuits also work to destroy the empire by interfering in Ireland and Scotland‘s political affairs, intending to break up Britain, so the Wylie‘s ideal empire is endangered: We see Britain going forth in her circuit among the nations. She is clothed with magnificence as with a garment. On her head is the diadem of glorious sovereignty. She carries in her right hand the Lamp of Life to chase away the night. She holds in her left the sword of law to plant order and liberty. Her coming is like the morning star. As she passes onward, letters and arts spring up around her steps, the fetters of the enslaved fall off, and the bowed down arise and stand erect. Wiser than Greece, stronger than Rome, she opens to the nations the gates of a new, a blissful, and a glorious age (136).
The Jesuits are situated to replace his vision with Romanist rulers. And that is the ultimate conspiracy, in Wylie‘s eyes. Recommended? Not really, although it is a fascinating read. Updated versions of conspiratorial charges against the Jesuits are more readily available via Google. Or for a papal conspiracy twist, rent the Da Vinci Code.
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