Tag: Native American spirituality

“Are you willing to kind of jump off a cliff and say yes to God?” Norman asked his wife, Diane, as they sat in their driveway with their three children. Everyone prayed and said they obeyed the call to the mission field. Norman’s friend served in Native American ministry and encouraged the Norman’s to live on a reservation during the summer of 1984, followed by a months-long, cross-cultural training with North America Indigenous Ministries.

Most Native Americans will say both good and evil exist, but Indigenous concepts differ from Eurocentric ideas when it comes to evil. As I have said before, there are hundreds of Indigenous tribes, and each has their own cultures and religions. As a rule, however, most seem to believe in evil – not as a concept or an entity separate from humans, but as an action made by humans.

November is Native American Heritage month, and it is astounding how many stereotypical and wrong ideas are out there about America’s indigenous people. For starters: We are still here.

On Saturday afternoon at the South Hill Spokane Public Library, Donell Barlow, author, health coach and member of the Ottawa tribe, shared her personal journey of healing from trauma by connecting to her culture and Native American spirituality.

Policies related to the mining of natural resources and damming of rivers on indigenous lands have also led to changes in Native Americans’ religious practices.

According to Mace, the goal of the picnic is to start a conversation on the issue, educate people on what is happening, “introduce people in Spokane, with the congregations, to Nimiipuu, to the Nez Perce,” and describe what is at stake to this group and what the salmon mean to them.

When I was 17 and still living in California, I worked in a very small spiritual/occult shop. My job was to keep the various merchandise (books, figures, candles, etc.) in order and dust free.