American Religious Experience
In their book, Lame Deer, Seeker of Visions, John Lame Deer and Richard Erdoes present the views of Native Americans on their religion and that of European-Americans, which was introduced during colonization. The speaker is a respectable and experienced Holy Man in the Lakota community, which makes his people attribute great meaning and authority to his words. In that case, his ideas, as presented in the book, are considered as general truth among the Lakota community, which is one of the Native American tribes. In his explanations as written down by Richard Erdoes, Lame Deer focuses on the differences between Native Americans’ religion and that of European-Americans (whom Lame Deer refers to as ‘white men’), which …show more content…
He says, “I am an Indian. I think about ordinary, common things like this pot” (Erdoes and Lame Deer 96). The Holy Man of the Lakota community says that discerning about modest things in life is not an emblem of possessing a simple mind but it shows people who focus more on spiritual matters and family bonds. Native Americans highly regard their religion and relatives and conduct every spiritual ritual with respect, which European-Americans find to be backward. Lame Deer also says, “We Indians live in a world of symbols and images where the spiritual and commonplace are one” (Erdoes and Lame Deer 96). They respect symbols as they are signs of spirituality. In contrast, European-Americans do not share the same opinion as they see symbols to be only words that are either spoken or put down on paper. Europeans see items and symbols that are valuable to Native Americans as worthless based on their cultural and economic standards. As the gaps in economic standards continue to rise, the differences in religious systems become …show more content…
For instance, he says that the old-days symbols used in holy Native ceremonies today symbolize “The Virgin Mary and the White Buffalo Calf Woman” (Erdoes and Lame Deer 212). This likening shows that Native Americans are tolerant to other religions, which is different from European settlers who formed the European-American community. They still fail to tolerate Native Americans and respect their
In their book, Lame Deer, Seeker of Visions, John Lame Deer and Richard Erdoes present the views of Native Americans on their religion and that of European-Americans, which was introduced during colonization. The speaker is a respectable and experienced Holy Man in the Lakota community, which makes his people attribute great meaning and authority to his words. In that case, his ideas, as presented in the book, are considered as general truth among the Lakota community, which is one of the Native American tribes. In his explanations as written down by Richard Erdoes, Lame Deer focuses on the differences between Native Americans’ religion and that of European-Americans (whom Lame Deer refers to as ‘white men’), which …show more content…
He says, “I am an Indian. I think about ordinary, common things like this pot” (Erdoes and Lame Deer 96). The Holy Man of the Lakota community says that discerning about modest things in life is not an emblem of possessing a simple mind but it shows people who focus more on spiritual matters and family bonds. Native Americans highly regard their religion and relatives and conduct every spiritual ritual with respect, which European-Americans find to be backward. Lame Deer also says, “We Indians live in a world of symbols and images where the spiritual and commonplace are one” (Erdoes and Lame Deer 96). They respect symbols as they are signs of spirituality. In contrast, European-Americans do not share the same opinion as they see symbols to be only words that are either spoken or put down on paper. Europeans see items and symbols that are valuable to Native Americans as worthless based on their cultural and economic standards. As the gaps in economic standards continue to rise, the differences in religious systems become …show more content…
For instance, he says that the old-days symbols used in holy Native ceremonies today symbolize “The Virgin Mary and the White Buffalo Calf Woman” (Erdoes and Lame Deer 212). This likening shows that Native Americans are tolerant to other religions, which is different from European settlers who formed the European-American community. They still fail to tolerate Native Americans and respect their