Tag: religion
-
Indigenous Paranormal and Supernatural Phenomena in Pennsylvania
Four Phenomena of Religious and Spiritual Significance in Indian Country Indigenous peoples and their traditions have long been influential on mainstream American society. Indigenous religious and spiritual traditions, in particular, have had significant impacts on popular belief in the paranormal and supernatural. For example, Indigenous phenomena such as skinwalkers and wendigos have become objects of…
-
Native Spiritualities and Identities as Influences on Mental Health in American Indian Communities in the Midwest
Spirituality and individual identity are necessary factors to fully understand physical and mental health outcomes in many communities. However, limited research has been conducted to assess the impacts of these constructs within American Indian communities despite rampant health disparities. To begin addressing this gap, a cross-sectional survey (N=968) was conducted in urban and reservation communities…
-
Beyond Skinwalkers and Indian Burial Grounds
Contemporary Belief in Anomalous Phenomena Among American Indians Presumptions about Native American spiritual belief frequently spill over into mainstream beliefs related to paranormal and supernatural phenomena. From the birth of the “Indian burial ground” trope in nineteenth century American literature to contemporary belief in skinwalkers among paranormal researchers, Native beliefs about anomalous phenomena continue to…
-
What does it mean to be American Indian today?
After many years of analysis and writing, I’m so excited to announce that our book, The Complexities of American Indian Identity in the Twenty-First Century, is available where all books are sold. Although some exceptions exist, much of the literature about what it means to be a Native person in the United States is mired…
-
Social Media and the Chief Big Foot Memorial Ride
The annual Chief Big Foot Memorial Ride represents the longest continuous example of Lakota memorial and resistance rides in contemporary Lakota activism. First held in 1986, this commemoration of the journey of Chief Big Foot’s band of Lakotas and the subsequent Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890 now reaches beyond the confines of the ride itself…
-
Lakota Oral Traditions and Dakota Access Pipeline Resistance
The No Dakota Access Pipeline resistance movement provides a poignantexample of the way in which cultural, spiritual, and oral traditions remain authoritative in the lives of American Indian peoples, specifically the Lakota people. Confronted with restrictions of their religious freedoms and of access to clean drinking water due to construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline…
-
The Persistence of Koinonia Farm in the Post-Jordan Years
Koinonia had been the brainchild of Jordan in the early 1940s as he searched for the best way to live a true Christian life focused on pacifism, equality for all, and a total sharing reminiscent of the early Church as described in the Book of Acts.1 Koinonia Farm, as it was called for the first…