The spiritual lives of indigenous people have long been of interest to outsiders, especially colonial occupiers. Indigenous spirituality, once evaluated as non-conforming to colonial powers’ pre-existing ideas of religion, was used as justification for the subjugation of indigenous peoples and the seizure of their lands. Interactions between the English and the Wampanoag, an indigenous nation whose members inhabit the eastern coast of what is now considered New England, can be categorized in this general pattern. During the sixteenth century, the Wampanoag were the focus of English Puritan missionaries’ conversion efforts, who hoped to save the souls of the Wampanoag and, in doing so, recreate them with respect to the Puritan imagining of civilization.
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However, when the manner in which the author conveys this information is examined, a number of failings become apparent. Shuffleton uses the terms “shaman” and “shamanism” in order to represent Wampanoag spiritual practices (Shuffleton 112). Shaman is a non-specific word with origins in northern Asia that is used by anthropologists to refer to religions in which trances and dreams are employed to connect to the supernatural. However, shamanism is much too general a term to use when discussing Wampanoag beliefs, as it does not have origins within the Wampanoag nor in North America. It is also not the word that the Wampanoag employ when referring to their spiritual leaders (Silverman 151). Shuffleton’s use of the term indicates a lack of respect for distinctions between indigenous groups, their languages, and their spiritual beliefs. In addition, Shuffleton uses the name “Squanto” in his article, which is the English version of the man’s Wampanoag name, Tisquantum (Shuffleton 108). Seemingly innocuous, the use of Squanto instead of Tisquantum is an example of the erasure of Tisquantum’s identity as an indigenous Wampanoag man, whose life began long before the arrival of the English. Interestingly, the influence of the colonists’ preconceptions that Shuffleton analyzes is not something that …show more content…
While this missing piece to the academic literature on the topic is not likely due to one factor alone, recent publications that do not focus on, but do briefly discuss, indigenous spirituality have indicated that indigenous peoples are very conscious of the disclosure and spread of information about their spirituality and spiritual practices. In the 2011 article “Quaker Sweat,” the Mashpee Wampanoag vocally objected to the use of the sweat lodge ceremony by a Quaker organization (Aldred 81). Though the Quaker who was directing the sweat was supposedly introduced to the ceremony by Lakota spiritual leaders in the eighties, the Mashpee Wampanoag made the point that the sweat lodge ceremony is not something that should be conducted by a non-indigenous spiritual leader (Aldred 75; 81). They reinforced the point that the misuse of indigenous ceremonies by non-natives is particularly frustrating when indigenous peoples only recently gained the legal right to practice their indigenous beliefs (Aldred 81). Concerns with current identity and appropriation were at the forefront of the Mashpee Wampanoag’s discussion, especially when non-indigenous people were receiving money for providing an indigenous “experience” to members of a dominant culture that historically oppressed indigenous peoples (Aldred
However, when the manner in which the author conveys this information is examined, a number of failings become apparent. Shuffleton uses the terms “shaman” and “shamanism” in order to represent Wampanoag spiritual practices (Shuffleton 112). Shaman is a non-specific word with origins in northern Asia that is used by anthropologists to refer to religions in which trances and dreams are employed to connect to the supernatural. However, shamanism is much too general a term to use when discussing Wampanoag beliefs, as it does not have origins within the Wampanoag nor in North America. It is also not the word that the Wampanoag employ when referring to their spiritual leaders (Silverman 151). Shuffleton’s use of the term indicates a lack of respect for distinctions between indigenous groups, their languages, and their spiritual beliefs. In addition, Shuffleton uses the name “Squanto” in his article, which is the English version of the man’s Wampanoag name, Tisquantum (Shuffleton 108). Seemingly innocuous, the use of Squanto instead of Tisquantum is an example of the erasure of Tisquantum’s identity as an indigenous Wampanoag man, whose life began long before the arrival of the English. Interestingly, the influence of the colonists’ preconceptions that Shuffleton analyzes is not something that …show more content…
While this missing piece to the academic literature on the topic is not likely due to one factor alone, recent publications that do not focus on, but do briefly discuss, indigenous spirituality have indicated that indigenous peoples are very conscious of the disclosure and spread of information about their spirituality and spiritual practices. In the 2011 article “Quaker Sweat,” the Mashpee Wampanoag vocally objected to the use of the sweat lodge ceremony by a Quaker organization (Aldred 81). Though the Quaker who was directing the sweat was supposedly introduced to the ceremony by Lakota spiritual leaders in the eighties, the Mashpee Wampanoag made the point that the sweat lodge ceremony is not something that should be conducted by a non-indigenous spiritual leader (Aldred 75; 81). They reinforced the point that the misuse of indigenous ceremonies by non-natives is particularly frustrating when indigenous peoples only recently gained the legal right to practice their indigenous beliefs (Aldred 81). Concerns with current identity and appropriation were at the forefront of the Mashpee Wampanoag’s discussion, especially when non-indigenous people were receiving money for providing an indigenous “experience” to members of a dominant culture that historically oppressed indigenous peoples (Aldred