15th-Century: Native American Religion Vs. Christianity

The Native Americans of the Great Plains Religion was all about the Sundance and dreams they had. There were people dancing around a fire ,starting the Sundance with a lady cutting down a tree to start it off. During it they would make sacrifices with people and continually hurt themselves for their horse god. So the gods they worshipped were the horse and buffalo gods because they were the animals they saw the most ,they also had the most benefits from them too. They used pipes and other materials during the Sundance to show where they should go next on their journey and who should they become in the future of their lives like vishions . The Great plains indians were very different from other indians with their horse gods and such violence

The Indian culture was negatively changed because the Indians’ religion was based upon believing many gods controlled their way of being, while Christianity was based on one supreme being who controls the universe. Common Indian gods included a god for the Sun, Moon, land or the Earth, the creator, and water (Nature). In the Cherokee tribe, the Creator is named Unetlanvhi (oo-nay-hla-nuh-hee or oo-net-la-nuh-hee) (“Legendary”). Some of the other “Creators” in other tribes include Maheu in the Cheyenne tribe, Gitchie Manitou in the Ojibway tribe, and Ahone in the Powhatan tribe (“Legendary”). With all the different types of gods in Indian cultures, the Indians used many spiritual rituals to worship these gods (Religion). Some of the rituals included feasts, music, dances, and other performances. The relationship of the Indian to nature (spirits, land, weather) was tantamount (Religion).

In the two creation myths of the Osage and Navarro, there are several differences. A major example of this is the origin of humans. In the Osage Creation Account, humans reside in the sky until the mythical Elk helps the human rid water from the landmasses that they would eventually inhabit. The Navarro creation myth states that humans resided inside of the earth and that Badger, another mystical personified animal, helped them reach the surface. Both of the Native American tribes all seem to have the same basic belief, that they are connected to nature and are polytheistic, but lack certain common details. This variety in belief is the result of the environment that they inhabit.

There are many religions throughout the world today. Although there are several different religions, many individuals are not educated about the other beliefs besides there own. Religions today do have differences but are also very much the same. This is demonstrated between the religion of Yoruba, and Christianity. The Gods that the people in these religions worship are different but have the same purpose throughout the lives of each individual. Each individual’s purpose and goal in these religions also display similarities. Furthermore the rituals that are done throughout these religions are done for directions and to improve the relationship between the individual and their god. There are various differences and similarities between

In Chapter 2 and Chapter 3, the book highlights some interesting parts about indigenous religions of North America and Africa. For starters, in the indigenous religions, they have some interesting beliefs about how the world was created. Many of the beliefs they hold about the origin of the creation of man, is from ancient myths of North America. The belief that North America is the motherland for all creation. However, each native religion has different t how they describe their superman being.

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

In some ways or what not, the bible of the Iroquois and Judeo-Christian are similar then most people see. To begin with, both religions are led by either a spiritual being or figure. As usual, the two stories begin with the spiritual thing or being creates the earth and all the animals and land on it.

Some Native American creation stories can be contrasted with the book of Genesis from the Bible. For example, the land is made differently in each story. In the Native American stories “How the World Was Made” and “The Sky Tree”, land was made by “animals bringing up soil from the water,” while God “made the heavens and the earth” in the

One of the first differences between the Iroquois’ beliefs and Christianity is the theory on “the creation of life”. The Iroquois believe in a creator God called ‘Hahgwehdiyu’, which was the good spirit of the twin Gods of Wind Breath. He shaped the world with the palm of his hands and recycled the corpse of his dead mother to create the sky, moon and the sun. He planted a grain of corn in her to give the world fertility. It is believed that when the Sky Woman, or the mother, fell from the sky she would fertilize the earth so her granddaughters could grow and harvest many things. They also believe in a current God called

That is not to say that native groups did not utilize the tools around them to optimize their ability to have access to some means of autonomy, be that on a personal or a societal level. Native individuals utilized Christianity when they were taken to court, as seen in Plimouth through Isaac and Betty. There was an even more effective use of the system at a societal level, typically through the recruitment of missionaries, and using Bible scriptures in petitions and other legal documents was the most common form of appealing to the religious legal system. There is also the vital aspect of unity in Massachusetts that Christianity brought to the native community, even if all did not believe, they were forced into practicing, and as a condition of that found solidarity with other native groups that enabled numbers that forced colonizers to listen to them, as seen through the Mittark’s Will. Religion was also vital for the fur trade in new French colonies, allowing native women to act as converts and mediators to between the colonizers and the native groups they hailed from. This conversion to Catholicism was also vital to native women in creating a system of sustainable survival without their native past or their colonizers after their husband’s death. This is a few of the specific examples as to how native Americans used the Christian faith to better their position in this system. It was effective in the context of gaining them rights and land that they would not have had without it, it was useful but it did not solve for colonizer violence against these

‘’Have you ever known about the Mayan religious and the American religious, like how they are similar and different like the sacrifices,home's,beauty,and the numbering system.

What differences do you notice between the Native American and Christian origin stories? How might those differences shape what will happen when the two groups come into contact?

From the beginning of time of the early development of each religion, there were various differences between the Christian and

A society in which every denomination and religious following can live together in harmony is something that, if thought about over 100 years ago, would seem like a joke. Baptists, puritans, Anglicans, Lutherans, all came seeking to recreate themselves in a land that was still taking shape. Those that came to this new world, felt a certain disconnect whether it be at home, work, or in many cases religion. America, or this new world, seemed, rather appeared to be the perfect haven for those seeking a new start.

Religion has played a very important role in society and the history of mankind for over thousands of years. Originally created by ancient peoples as a way to explain the unknown, religion has greatly evolved and spread across the globe. As new religions have formed and spread, the diversity and similarities between these new religions have also increased, especially due to their geographic locations. Two civilizations in particular with both similar and distinct religions are ancient China, and ancient Egypt. Ancient Chinese religion and ancient Egyptian religion share many things in common with each other, yet at the same time they are