Historical Scholarship: Indigenous Theology - Conversion, Syncretism, or Assimilation?

                             Indigenous Theology: Conversion, Syncretism, or Assimilation?

Purpose

Study the development of Indigenous Christian theology and how Native Americans interpret Christian teachings within their cultural context.

Abstract

With this study, I propose to research the norms and nuances of the Theology of Native Americans from the onset of colonization through the 20th century. I aim to show an evolution of Native American theology as it met and merged or morphed with the convictions and practices of the colonists who settled in North America. This study intends to reflect on conversion methods utilized by Christian settlers and the resulting spiritual and cultural changes in the Indigenous communities being converted. Additionally, this project will discover how the Indigenous communities have been impacted by the loss of their original spiritual practices and how fragments of those customs appear in contemporary Indigenous theology. With this study, I hope to illustrate the complex dynamics between Native American cultures and Christianity by highlighting both challenges and adaptations. Research methods for this examination will include analyzing previously completed scholarly research, available relative primary sources, newspaper clippings, and audio/video interviews.

Research Questions:

•           How did Christian missionary activities alter traditional Native American belief systems during colonization and the formation of the United States?

•           What forms of resistance and adaptation did Native American communities exhibit in response to missionary efforts?

•           How have historical missionary practices shaped modern Native American Christian perspectives and identities?

 

Bibliography

 

Axtell, James. The Invasion Within: The Contest of Cultures in Colonial North America. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1986

Smith, A. (2006). "The One Who Did Not Break His Promises": Native Americans in the Evangelical Race Reconciliation Movement: PROD. The American Behavioral Scientist, 50(4), 478-509. https://go.openathens.net/redirector/liberty.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/one-who-did-not-break-his-promises-native/docview/214755551/se-2

Stockel, H. Henrietta. On the Bloody Road to Jesus: Christianity and the Chiricahua Apaches. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2004

Wiewora, N. (2011). Native Americans, Christianity, and the Reshaping of the American Religious Landscape. Journal of the Early Republic, 31(4), 729-732. https://go.openathens.net/redirector/liberty.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/native-americans-christianity-reshaping-american/docview/1022053265/se-2

Wyss, Hilary. Writing Indians: Literacy, Christianity, and Native Community in Early America. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 2000.