Puritans

Puritans

The history of American religions is dominated by the presence of Christianity brought to the New World by European settlers. Columbus's discovery in 1492 marked the beginning of a massive "white" invasion that would consume the entire continent of North America over the next four centuries. Although Christianity manifested itself in countless denominations, it was, nevertheless, the umbrella under which most Europeans in America gathered. It served as common ground on which white settlers could stand together in the struggle for survival in the wilderness of the New World. Whatever differences there were between denominations were insignificant when compared to the differences between the white European Christianity and their counterparts on the continent, the resident Native Americans. This fact, along with the desire and need for land, turned Native Americans into a convenient enemy for most groups of European settlers.

Popular American history has traditionally viewed the past through white eyes. Much of the history and culture of many Native American civilizations were lost during the European invasion of the continent. The absence of a written language among most tribes force them to depend on aril traditions that were difficult to maintain as their civilizations were being killed off and separated by the dominant white culture. For this reason, it is often difficult to locate information concerning the religious beliefs and rituals of the large variety of Native American civilizations that flourished in North America before the time of the European invasion. This project will provide some of this information by taking a cross-section of certain Native American tribes from separate and distinct geographic regions and comparing certain aspects of each of their religious beliefs and rituals. I plan to show how each tribe's religion was impacted by the environmental conditions that surrounded it, and in what ways these religions were affected by the invasion of Christianity. The Iroquois Nation of the eastern woodlands, the Dakota tribes of the central plains, and the Apache tribes of the southwestern desert shall serve as the subjects of this project.

The Iroquois Nation of the eastern woodlands was one of the most highly organized civilizations that developed among Native American tribes in North America. This particular "league", as it is sometimes referred , is surpassed in greatness only by the advanced civilizations of the Mayans, Aztecs, and Incas in the pre-discovered Western world. "They achieved for themselves a more remarkable civil organization, and acquired a higher degree of influence, than any other race of Indian lineage,...{in North America}." (Morgan 1954,3). The league occupied most of the area that makes up the present day state of New York, however, it's influence and territory extended into parts of Canada. Their society was centered around the wilderness that surrounded them. The Iroquois relied on agriculture, as well as hunting and gathering. Their environment provided them with fertile soil, plentiful game, and streams that were full of fish. The rich natural resources that surrounded the Iroquois were undoubtedly their greatest strength and directly responsible for the success of the nation.

The relative ease at which the Iroquois Nation was able to provide for the needs of it's people allowed for the development of a systematic belief system that was more developed than most other systems found among Native American civilizations. According to Lewis H. Morgan, their religion is characterized by a monotheistic belief in an all-powerful creator known as the "Great Spirit", or "Ha-wen-ne-yu." "The Iroquois believed in the constant superintending care of the Great Spirit. He ruled and administered the world, and the affairs of the red race." (1954,146). The Iroquois failed to see the need in developing a detailed conception of their creator. This knowledge was thought to be above and beyond their capabilities to understand. His power was administered to the material world through "a class of inferior spiritual existences, by whom he was surrounded." (1954,147). While divine attributes concerning the Great Spirit remained undeveloped, the Iroquois gave detailed descriptions of this lower class of spirits that interacted with the material world. The were known as "Invisible Agents" or "Ho-no-che-no-keh." (Morgan 1954). The power possessed by these spirits was given to them by the Great Spirit and were the manifestations of his unlimited power. Some of these spirits were given names, however, they were often identified with the object or force that they presided over. For example, He-no, one of the more important spirits, was given the thunderbolt and controlled the weather. According to Morgan, he had the form of man and wore the costume of a warrior (1954,147).

While the Iroquois belief system centered around the idea of a benevolent Great Spirit, it did not ignore the existence of evil in the world. Evil is represented by the brother of the Great Spirit, "Ha-ne-go-ate-geh", or "the Evil-minded" (1954,147). This evil spirit exists independently and controls it's own inferior spiritual beings. These agents of evil also exist in the material world and are place there in an attempt to bring about evil. According to Morgan, the Great Spirit does not have any type of positive authority over the Evil-minded, except for the power to overcome him when necessary (1954,148). The red race is left to choose either obedience to the Great Spirit or submission to the Evil-minded. It is important to note that the Iroquois developed the idea of an immortal soul. This soul was judged by the Great Spirit upon the death of the body. The threat of punishment in the afterlife increased morality concerns, which aided in the success of the Iroquois Nation.

The ritual ceremonies practiced by the Iroquois tribes were systematic worship services that occurred in accordance to certain seasonal periods throughout the year. The rituals were handed down through the generation and remained unchanged for centuries. Festival most commonly occurred during important agricultural periods. Worship and thanks were given to the Great Spirit for protection and survival. One of the "Invisible Agents" were usually honored depending on what time of year the ceremony was taking place. The ceremonies were led by "Keepers of the Faith", or "Ho-nun-den-ont" (Morgan 1953,177). They were not an organized priesthood like one would imagine, but rather a loosely organized council of qualified individuals who were assigned