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Native American religions were prevalent in the pre-Columbian era, including state religions. Common concept is the supernatural world of deities, spirits and wonders, such as the Algonquian manitou or the LakotaŹ¼s wakan, [17] [18] [8] as well as Great Spirit, [19] Fifth World, world tree, and the red road among many Indians. [8]
Native American religions, religious beliefs and sacramental practices of the indigenous peoples of North and South America. Learn more about Native American religions, including the beliefs and practices of various peoples as well as historical changes and current issues.
Native American religions often honor a vast array of deities. Some of these are creator gods, others are tricksters, deities of the hunt, and gods and goddesses of healing. The term “Great Spirit” is applied often in Native American spirituality, to refer to the concept of an all-encompassing power.
Cherokee spiritual beliefs are held in common among the Cherokee people – Native American peoples who are Indigenous to the Southeastern Woodlands, and today live primarily in communities in North Carolina (the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians), and Oklahoma (the Cherokee Nation and United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians).
Native American religious traditions encompass a diverse array of beliefs, practices, and features of material culture and society that reflect and shape individual experiences and communal life among Indigenous communities in what is today the United States.
In many ways, the formation of the Native American Church laid bare the competing definitions of religion, religious freedom, and American national identity held by the majority of white American Protestants and Native American peyotists.
Native American religions - Rituals, Beliefs, Shamans: Initiations also mark the ascent of individuals into positions of religious authority. Priests, diviners, and spirit mediums play special roles in religious life, even though the nature of their authority varies greatly across South America.
Two such examples are the Native American Church, sometimes known as the peyote church, and the Ghost Dance movement. The Native American church emerged in the mid-19th century when an ancient ritual of central Mexico moved into the United States and blended with Christian influences.
Native Americans, like any other group, are capable of acts that might well conflict with the major thrust of their sacred traditions. We must, therefore, differentiate between the concrete behavior of a people and their ideals.
This course offers a broad introduction to the diversity of American Indian religious systems and their larger functions in communities and in history. We will explore general themes in the study of Native American religious traditions as well as look at some specific examples of practices, ideas, and beliefs.