European And Native American Beliefs

In Native American religions a dance called the Sun Dance is used as the rite of passage for young men. You men would stick a rod though their peck and dance around a pole of three days as a way to become connected with the Spirit World. The pole is used to show strength and the boys would quickly have to get the rod out by dancing. Another rite of passage in Native Americans religions is the Vision Quest. Young boys and girls partake in this to find their spirit animals. They go into the woods mostly naked and sometimes covered in body paint and fast in the woods for days. Eventually a spirit comes to them, most of the time as an animal but it can be in human form, and is said to be their guardian

Europeans and Native Americans both retained religious beliefs. Though, Native Americans articulated their beliefs in a less structured way. Europeans were monotheistic. They attended churches led by and educated clergy. And, unlike Native Americans, interpreted written scriptures. In

Native Americans lost their culture once the Spanish made them a part of the mission system. Before European arrival, they were predominantly pagan and had multiple gods or spirits which they worshipped as part of their rituals for successful harvest or hunt. Through the mission system, they underwent baptism through Catholicism and learned to worship only one supreme being and

Throughout the course of history there have been numerous accounts regarding Native American and European interaction. From first contact to Indian removal, the interaction was somewhat of a roller coaster ride, leading from times of peace to mini wars and rebellions staged by the Native American tribes. The first part of this essay will briefly discuss the pre-Columbian Indian civilizations in North America and provide simple awareness of their cultures, while the second part of this essay will explore all major Native American contact leading up to, and through, the American Revolution while emphasizing the impact of Spanish, French, and English explorers and colonies on Native American culture and vice versa. The third, and final, part of this essay will explore Native American interaction after the American Revolution with emphasis on westward expansion and the Jacksonian Era leading into Indian removal. Furthermore, this essay will attempt to provide insight into aspects of Native American/European interaction that are often ignored such as: gender relations between European men and Native American women, slavery and captivity of native peoples, trade between Native Americans and European colonists, and the effects of religion on Native American tribes.

European families always put the males first, whereas African and Native American cultures saw the woman as the symbol of family bond. The children were said to be descended through the mother’s side more than the father. Religion was somewhat similar between the Native American and African cultures where the Europeans strongly disagreed with. Africans believed that there was a center power and Native Americans believed there were several deities, where they both believed that focused on nature and the its forces. They both believed that objects (usually scared to them) held sprites of the dad and spirits that can be evil or good. On the other hand, Europeans believed that there was a single deity with written scriptures which was all run through

Many prominent historians argue a clash between culture and religious philosophy was the primary cause of conflict between European settlers in North America and Native Americans. However, a closer analysis of American history suggests otherwise. While a clash in cultures and religious differences did exist, the European domination of Native Americans was primarily fueled by European economic motivations, a desire for valuable natural resources and a craving to expand the American colonial system. Due to this, the conflict was inevitable.

The creative tales and wonders that Natives told were creative in nature and the way they cherished life. Native Americans’ religions varied, but different tribes believed being developed from a higher power and believed life came from the earth. Some examples of Native tales about religion start out, “In the beginning there was only darkness, with sky above and water below”(26) from the “Navajo creation Story,” and, “The lower world was in great darkness the possession of the great monster, but the upper world was inhabited by mankind,”(27) from the “Iroquois Creation Story.” Furthermore Natives had weaker immune systems and when the Europeans came across the Natives, they became very ill and many died from these new diseases. Natives Americans would trade raw materials and food with others, whereas the Europeans traded weapons and iron materials.

Native American culture is recognized in the United States. It has over five hundred tribes and village, the Native American culture has been spread throughout the entire globe. The main religions and the main traditions of the Native Americans were based on the culture of Animism. Animism is a commonly shared doctrine or belief of the indigenous people and many other Indian Tribes that have been found in North America. There is an enormous amount of languages that the Native Americans speak. “There were as many as nine hundred thousand inhabitants with over three hundred languages” (“Native American Blog”). Some of the federally recognized tribes vary in population and they vary in land-base. Many of the tribes all have their own culture, their own language, and their own history. Every tribe has its own unique customs. Some of the tribes even have distinct styles of housing, dressing, and eating.

Native Americans held great admiration for nature and their gods. People often dispute back and forth on whether or not we are similar or different compared to our Natives. Based on “The World on the Turtle’s Back,” “The Coyote and the Buffalo,” and Brother Bear, I can conclude that we obviously, for the most part, differ from ancient native cultures; people today do not hold nature to a great value and our religion is thoroughly different.

There are a large number of tribes within the Native American culture and they all have slightly different beliefs. Some native groups were oriented more towards hunting and gathering and depended on the spirits to help them find what they were out to look for. Other groups were more agricultural and looked for spirits to provide good weather for cropping. Although, they had different beliefs all of them established an animistic worldview and they had many things in common. After the Europeans moved to the new world the population expanded over time but due to the illnesses and diseases many people died. Most Native Americans believed in God who was responsible for creating the world. They praised and worshiped him but they also believed that there were other spirits which were able

Some common features of North American Indian culture are the food eaten, the clothes worn, the ideas worshipped and the outlook on life. Native American’s from this time period hunted for their food, so, they wouldn’t have varied too much in their diets. Also, in this time period, the Native Americans were considered family to each other, so the style of clothes they wore would’ve been similar to one another. Another thing that made their culture similar was their outlook on life. When researching their culture, I was brought to a handful of websites that told about their beliefs and how they celebrated their Gods.

Thesis Statement: I believe that a profound effect on Indian religion practiced in the New World was caused by Columbus and the Age of Discovery. Historical evidence proves that, before there were Europeans on this continent, there were native peoples living in communion with their environment and, very often, each other. Their religious practices were interwoven with their daily lives and religion held a prominent, significant place within their culture. The intrusion by Europeans into this peaceful world had profound effects on the Indians, especially their religious practices. What had been a peaceful, harmonic lifestyle changed dramatically that fall of 1492.

Since indigenous religious groups tend to live within a specific region, their religion is reinforced by their environment. The origins of these religions are based on the characteristics of their region (desert, mountainous, sea, etc.), developing into concrete explanations of their world.

Before Columbus ever came to the Americas, the indigenous people that lived on the continent led simpler, more spiritual lives. The ‘Indians’ (as Christopher Columbus mistakenly nicknamed the people) that lived throughout North America had many similarities. Marc Shulman of History Central wrote an interesting article containing details about life amongst the natives. (1) He writes, “Each group or nation spoke the same language, and almost all were organized around an extended clan or family and they usually descended from one individual. The Native Americans traded extensively between the different tribes. This allowed different tribes to specialize in different products and trade with tribes that were located far away.” He continues, “Native Americans believed in the power of the spirits. The spirits were found in nature. Their religious leaders were called Shamans. Native Americans believed that people should live in harmony with nature. They did not believe that people should own land rather the land belonged to

Native American traditions come from all different people and different cultures from all act over the region. Every Native American tribe culture and style of doing things like the way they’re people dress, the way that they gather food. Even before the arrival of the europeans in North America, the tribe were able to keep the peace between themselves . In the early 1600’s European settlers began to try to convert tribes to the Christian religion. They even took Indian children and put them in residential schools to teach them mainstream white culture. This practice continued all the way through the 1970’s. The Native American tribes has many different traditions, rituals, and holidays that vary between tribe.