Ch. 3: Aboriginal Spirituality

Death

Varies between nations. Those who died need to relearn what it is to be a spirit. Tradition requires a waiting period of one year. A Death Feast is held for the deceased

Thanksgiving celebrations

- An annual celebration for the field and forest harvest, specifically for farmers.
- Recognizes the spirits acting on their behalf to give them food.
- Renews the earth by prayers, chants, and dances. recognizing the spirits acting on their behalf to give them food.
- Adopted by non-Aboriginal peoples call it "Thanksgiving"

Creator

- Many Indigenous peoples believe in the idea of a Creator, Great Spirit, or Great Mystery: A power or being that has created the world and everything in it.
- These beings are often described as good or well-intentioned, though dangerous if treated carelessly or with disrespect.
- Believed to have given laws governing all Indigenous relationships for harmony in nature and mankind. Rights given by the Creator cannot be altered or taken by any other Nation.

Kateri Tekakwitha

- The first Native American to be recognized as a saint by the Catholic Church.
- Mother was Algonquin who married a Mohawk chief. Born in 1656 in the Mohawk village of Ossernenon. Five years after her conversion to Catholicism, she became ill and passed away at age 24 on April 17, 1680 (perhaps brought on by her excessive practices). Her name, Kateri, is the Mohawk form of Catherine, which she took from St. Catherine of Siena. She was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI on Oct. 21, 2012.
- Patroness of ecology and the environment, people in exile, and Native Americans.

Time

Considered to be circular. Divided into four seasons.

Names of the Great Spirit

- Spirit is all around us as Aboriginal people believe that the world is changing from within.
- Aboriginal peoples believe that the universe is a complex assembly of powers or spirits, that are small and great, beneficial and dangerous.
- Cannot be controlled; must coexist with these spiritual powers to keep harmony. Names include: Creator, Great Mystery.

A Sun Dance

Celebrated by peoples of the Prairies in June or July @ the time of the Full Moon.
- Began when a warrior's vision quest showed him a new way to pray to the Great Spirit.
- Purpose: became the renewal of dedication to the Great Spirit. Participants take part in 4 annual dances to prepare themselves for the final stage of the rite.
- 4 days before: dancers purify themselves (eg. sweat lodge) & prepare
- Takes 4 days, during which time the dancers fast
- Final stage involves piercing the body & tearing away from the piercing to symbolize a renewal of the quest for the spirit in one's life (in a dance)

Census figures from 2006 of Aboriginal People

Identifies 1,172,790 people as Aboriginal. However, not everyone participated so the numbers could have been higher

Powwow

- Similar to the sweat lodge: Dance of renewal for restoration of right relationships and healing of all
- Community celebration; get together and sing, dance, celebrate one's identity, heritage, language.
- Takes place in a circle, like all rituals. The space in the circle is holy and blessed by a spiritual leader.
- Dancers/singers enter circle from east, move clockwise, following the sun. Drumbeats symbolize the rhythm of creation - heartbeat of Mother Earth and the rhythm of the mother's heartbeat in womb

Ojibwa Feast of the Dead

- The Ojibwa celebrate the Feast of the Dead each autumn to remember all who died during the previous year.
- each family who has lost someone during the past year holds a banquet for the entire village.
- A place is set for the deceased, whose spirit remains with the family.

Vision Quest

- Linked with puberty
- Intense, solitary spiritual experiences for those seeking direction in life
- Young people prepare for a year and only go on the quest if parents/elders believe they are ready

Sacred Pipe

- used to offer prayers in a religious ceremony, to make a ceremonial commitment, or to seal a covenant or treaty.
- The carved wooden pipe bowl & stem used by Algonquin First Nations -- sometimes referred to as the peace pipe
- Symbolizes unity & harmony of the world

Parts of the Sacred Pipe

Stone bowl of the pipe represents the truth, stem: the way we are to live in harmony and balance.

Longhouse

the traditional dwelling of the Iroquois and other North American Aboriginals.

Inuit

- Means 'the people' in Inuktitut (their language)
- Member of an indigenous people of northern Canada and parts of Greenland and Alaska
- Inuksuk: large stone statues were used for communication + navigation + had spiritual meaning.

The Seven Fires

- Narrative tells of seven prophets who came to Anishinabe and left people with seven predictions of the future.
- Each prophecy is a 'fire', and each refers to a specific time to come.
- Ojibwa prophecy that the people would suffer and forget their traditional ways.
- Gives hope that Aboriginal culture will be revived and can live alongside non-Aboriginal cultures.

Residential Schools

- Institutions operated by the federal government to assimilate Indigenous children into British society.
- Cultural, physical, emotional and sexual abuse occured
- Federal gov apologized in 2008

Medicine Wheel

- Represents the circle of life and the connectedness between all species.
- five categories: powers of four directions, races, elements of the universe , stages of life and human personality
- The elders use this wheel to teach younger generations about their history

Eagle Feathers

- Eagle is considered a divine messenger, so the feathers are sacred
- Represents power and protection
- Believed to be the only creature to have touched the face of the creator bc they soar high in the sky

Shaman

- can be both a physical and spiritual healer and usually perform ceremonies for healing, using specific and appropriate herbal/medicines.
- Tell spiritual teachings like the chant for the creation of the Earth

Nunavut Legislature

- 1999
- Set up as a ring with all members, rather than members sitting on opposite sides.
- Suggests that Inuit decision making is a unified effort.

Animism

- The identification of the spirit with objects its inhabits.
- For most Aboriginal peoples, the spirit force is not animism (the spirit force is fluid)

Smudging Ceremony

- Scared herbs are burned in a shell or earthen bowl and then the smoke is brushed or washed over the eyes, mouth ears, hands, heart and whole being
- Used to purify people and places before a special event (ex. Wedding, powwow, healing, etc)
- Ashes are returned after to the earth in an area where people won't walk on

Naming Ceremony

- Name-giver, usually an elder who enters a time of fasting, meditation, prayer or dreaming. The name revealed by the spirit is given in a special ceremony.
- It may change in the future, it represents the identity of the person, consisting of their relation to the spirit power

Aboriginal Peoples

Aboriginal group refers to whether the person is First Nations (North American Indian), Métis or Inuk (Inuit).

Indigenous

Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original peoples.

Assimilate

To absorb one group into the culture of another

Intra-religious dialogue

Discussions and debates within a religion

Canada's Aboriginal pop is growing at a faster rate than the non-Aboriginal population.

T

An elder is always one of the oldest people in an Aboriginal community.

F

Most indigenous people prefer the word "religion" to describe their spiritual practices.

F

The stem of the sacred pipe represents

D. harmony and balance.

The vision quest usually takes place at

B. Puberty

Aboriginal people consider time to be

B. circular

The word "Inuit" means

A. People

The identification of the spirit with objects its inhabits is called

A. Animism

The Seven ________ refers to an Ojibwa prophecy that the people would suffer and forget their traditional ways

A. Fires

Discussions and debates within a religion

A. Intra-religious dialogue

To absorb one group into the culture of another

A. assimilation

A ritual used for purification

Smudging

Aboriginal populations statistics

Grew by 45% from 1996 to 2006, compared to the 8% growth in non-Indigenous people.

Elder

Aboriginal people who are recognized, respected, and consulted for their wisdom, experience, knowledge, background, and insight

Spirituality

They prefer the terms 'spirituality' and 'spiritual traditions'

Potlatch

giveaways that mark important family events, such as a birth or death.

2009 - Pope Benedict XVI

Expressed sorrow about residential schools in April 2009. Assembly of First Nations Chief Phil Fontaine, Aborginal elders, and survivors met with the pope.

Sweat Lodge

- Purifies the body, mind, spirit and heart. Restores relationships with self, others, the Creator and all creation. Sometimes called womb of Mother Earth.
- Closed, dark, structure built around a pit filled with heated rocks. Sweat leader pours water onto rocks to make steam.
- Participants return to the womb and innocence of childhood. They sing, pray, talk, meditate, sit in silence or reflect on creation stories, sometimes for multiple hours.

Hair

- Some Aboriginal peoples consider long, uncut hair to be sacred. Cut hair: sign of mourning.
- Generally braided; among some men, three braided strands signify body, mind, and spirit.
- Length/style are not uniform, but braids or uncut hair generally signify that style worn is of spiritual and cultural importance to individual and reinforces their sense of belonging to particular a First Nation.