Religious pluralism is an attitude towards the diversity of religions. It can be understood as the manyness of religions, where there is a "free existence of many faiths"(Albanese 2013:11), the idea that different religious systems can co-exist in a society together. To certain groups of people, religious pluralism is an obstacle for religious development as it can cause the lost of distinctiveness and challenge the 'one true way '; while other groups welcome religious pluralism as a means to religious freedom, where everyone can practice own religion without being judged. Throughout American history, especially when comparing the periods prior and after the World 's Fair in 1893, the progress for religious pluralism is too much and not enough. …show more content…
A custom of a society doomed to be destroyed, if not already so. For the Native Americans, achieving religious freedom has been elusive. From the federal government 's bans on the Native Americans ' traditional ceremonial practices during the nineteenth century to the legal battles over Indian sacred lands during the twenty-first century, the United States has often acted as if the indigenous traditions of the continent were not truly religious, therefore not eligible for the constitutional protections of the First Amendment (Wenger 2009:xiii). The federal government 's attitudes against the Native American was obvious and can also be seen during the Worlds Columbian Exposition, as they refused to invite Native Americans ' representative. The United States Secretary of the Interior Hubert Work argued that the "ordinances" of "Indian religion" must be modified "into harmony with the forms of the Christian religion which civilization has approved, from which out rules of life are drafted and upon which our Government is founded "(Wenger 2009:174). America was not tolerant of religions other than Christianity. Agitated by the alarming circumstance, Native Americans realized their culture being endangered and their freedom of religious practices being constrained. With reference to their previous success, they attempted to disguise …show more content…
Sociologist Levy-Bruhl, although did not directly, commented that they disliked reasoning and did not adopt logic (Levy-Bruhl 1923). In an attempt to understand something they can 't visualize or explain, they classified it as witchcraft (Levy-Bruhl 1923). To those who used the lens of salvage ethnography to study Native Americans, they were primitive because they were not industrialized. These thoughts put them at a disadvantage; they were seen as a relic of a pre-modern society, yet they were said to have a beautiful history that needed to be remembered. Despite having real Natives living in America, they were presented as little dolls in the context of a natural history museum (Capriccioso 2009); these false representations were deeply embodied in the society, the perceived primitiveness set limits to their religious status; and there is a lack of representation of the "primitive" at the World 's Parliament of Religions (Burris
The Indigenous people of America are called Native Americans or often referred to as “Indians”. They make up about two percent of the population in the United States and some of them still live in reservations. They once lived freely in the wilderness without any sort of influence or exposure from the Europeans who later came in the year of 1492, and therefore their culture is very different from ours.. In the following essay we will discover some differences between the religious beliefs of the Native American Iroquois and Christianity to see if the culture and ways of living have an effect on the view of religion, but we will also get to know some similarities between them. I am going to be focusing on the Iroquois, which are the northeastern Native Americans who are historically important and powerful.
Religion has greatly influenced western civilization. Religion is a way to express ourselves in our own way. To be able to choose who or what we believe in freely. This gives us a sense of individualism and helps our civilization to grow and develop each religion. Just about every ancient culture practiced religion in some way. They were either monotheist, polytheist, atheist, or believed in “magic”. Western civilization was impacted by religion in more ways than one. Every religion contributed in their own way. Some religions even worked together to help create a stronger, more structured civilization.
America is full and rich with diverse people, religions and values; they make America great. Just look at Riverside, California, there are over fifty churches of different denominations of Christianity, three synagogues, two temples, and one mosque; all coinciding peacefully in the city (Yellow Pages). Because Riverside is so diverse, religious pluralism and religious tolerance are two steps in making Riverside more connected. The first step is tolerance, a reflex that acknowledges a person will come across people of a different faith. The second step is pluralism, which is a better understanding of a person’s religion as well as the other religions around them. Many believe pluralism is the better of the two, because of the interaction involved and the creation of harmony, but pluralism’s faults are greater than the benefits. Currently religious pluralism is quality America should strive for, but America is not ready for pluralism yet, so religious tolerance is best for the diverse population of America today.
I wish I could forget it all, but the picture of six-hundred and forty-five wagons lumbering over the frozen ground with their cargo of suffering humanity still lingers in my memory.” He says that he wishes he had not seen what he saw on this trip and he wishes it did not happen. When the Cherokees appealed to the U.S. to protect their land, the Court, led by Chief Justice John Marshall, ruled that the states were not allowed to make laws that govern the Cherokees, only the federal government can. This meant that Georgia laws don’t involve the Cherokees. Many religious groups, like the Quakers, didn’t want to force Native Americans against their will to move from their homelands.
The Native American tribes of the American Rocky Mountain States were long characterized as being homogenous with little difference between them. In reality they are as diverse as European states, but like Europeans the religions that shaped their actions held a common theme. “[A]ll their religions had important characteristics in common… the Indian visionaries felt the universe about them and dedicated themselves to keeping man’s world in balance with the cosmos... All of them sought to communicate with the powers of nature.” (Hurdy 14) The words of Hopi chiefs and elders, declared in 1951, are true for all tribes: “Our land, our religion, and our life are one.” (Martin 15)
Furthermore, the land given from the Dawes Act to the Native Americans still continued to be watched over by the army, where Native American’s culture was not to be expressed. According to, “Wage Work in the Sacred Circle: The Ghost Dance as Modern Religion” by Louis S. Warren, the article examines Native American’s use of the ghost dance and how the American viewed these behaviors. Warren writes, “the army had been in charges with suppressing the religion among the [Native tribes].” The only religion acceptable was Christianity, nothing more, nothing less. America refused to understand the native culture, but decided that eliminating the culture is considered an easier route. It’s easier to eliminate than to adopt an idea. The best way America
The governmental leaders of the United States of America began implementing Indian policies from its inception. As Euro-Americans they expected all non-whites in the U.S. to assimilate into a Euro-American (Christian) lifestyle, without reciprocation or sympathy to the traditions and history of our native people. Our founding fathers and subsequent leaders of the United States at varying times have used suppression, segregation, aggression, and assimilation to manage what they perceived as an Indian problem, and civilize them. The native peoples of North America have responded to these actions by, at times, complying with the U.S. government and allowing themselves to be relocated to other areas of the country leaving behind their ancestral
The Americans settled all over the United States and in the 1820s began showing interest in the West because of trade with Asia. Certain leaders were sent out on missions' to "help" better the lives of the Indians and Mexicans. When the white settlers first came to West they viewed the Indians and Mexicans as savages. They did not think of them as human because their lifestyle was unsuitable, or rather different then their own. The only way that they could tolerate them was to try and change their way of living. They attempted to convert them into the Christian religion, to change the way they ate, what they ate, how they ate it, the way they dressed, teach them English, etc. "The object of the missions is to convert as many of the wild Indians as possible, and to train them up within the walls of the establishment in the exercise of a good life, and of some trade, so that they may be able to provide for themselves and become useful members of civilized society."1
Duane Champagne in Social Change and Cultural Continuity Among Native Nations explains that there has never been one definitive world view that comprises any one Native American culture, as there is no such thing as one “Native community” (2007:10). However, there are certain commonalities in the ways of seeing and experiencing the world that many Native communities and their religions seem to share.
As the United States government realized early on, Native American spirituality differs from Christian religious doctrine. For Christians, there is a distinct separation between religious practice and everyday activity. For Native Americans, however, no such clear-cut distinction exists because religion cannot be separated from everyday life. Even using the word "religion" to describe Native American spirituality is misguided, because it fails to take into consideration the inseparable connection between spirituality and culture. One cannot exist without the other. Native American spiritual observances are "guided by cycles, seasons and other natural related occurrences,” and these spiritual aspects are inextricably woven into the culture itself (Dill).
Throughout human history, religion has played a fundamental role in societal development, regardless of the culture. Christianity, in particular, has profoundly shaped the last two thousand years of history and continues to do so today. This holds true in the case of European development and exploration of the New World. As exploration in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries flourished, many countries set out to declare land on behalf of their country, and in an effort to bring honor to their God. When English settlers first developed colonies in New England, one of their goals was to share the word of God with the Native Americans they encountered. This drastically conflicted with the views of the Native Indians, and completely altered the development of North America. European religious views in early North American exploration set the tone for America’s development into a commodification driven society that exploited the environment as a means of economic potential.
Over the history of our country Native Americas have long since been oppressed in trying to practice their Native Religions freely, and openly. It wasn’t until the American Indian Religious Freedom Act (AIRFA) of 1978, which “acknowledged the unique nature of Native spirituality” (Limb & Hodge, 2008, p. 618). This law stated that the policy of the United States would be to protect and preserve the right of Native Americans to believe and practice their traditional religions. This was the first major step in the United States history that sought to protect Native Americans and their rights to self-expression of spirituality.
Thomas, Oliver "Buzz". "How To Keep The 'United' In United States: Coping With Religious Diversity In The World's First 'New' Nation." Church & State Feb. 2007: 19+. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 1 Mar. 2013.
Missionaries were sent to the tribes to spread the word of Christianity under the Civilization Act. Today the act of sending in missionaries would be viewed as a violation of the First Amendment. The amendment states that there shall be no governmental support of any religion. In that time though they were still beginning their school day with a reading from the Protestant Bible (Spring, 1997, p. 18). The Presbyterian and Congregationalist churches brought into existence the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) in 1810. Their mission was worldwide and they sent missionaries abroad as well as the Native American tribes. According to Spring, the missionaries viewed the Native Americans as foreign “heathen.” A powerful example of the path to deculturalization was Reverend James Ramsey’s visit to a Choctaw school in 1846. As quoted in the Spring text, Ramsey stated, “`I showed them [on a map] that the people who speak the English language, and who occupied so small a part of ...
In this way the religion practiced by the Native Americans was taken as contradictions to Christianity. The natives were informed that Christianity was designed to be an eternal rule of significance and a means from which they could use to return to God from their religions that had deviated (Eliot par. 3). Through sermons given by Whitfield, the minds of the natives were engaged in religion and making religion the subject of most of their discussions. They embraced all the opportunities to hear what was been taught on Christianity. The Christian revivals were attended by the young and old alike (Edwards par.