CHRISTIANITY and ABORIGINAL CULTURES

This page is dedicated to the exploration of all aspects of the interaction between Christianity and indigenous cultures, particularly in the Americas.

- Ian D. Ritchie, Ph.D.


North American Aboriginal Culture

  • A brief introduction to questions arising out of the interaction between North American aboriginal cultures and Christianity is found in the Free Press article "Culture redefined".
  • Debra Fieguth's article, also on the conference in Portage La Prairie on Christianity and Aboriginal Culture, is entitled: "White church has much to learn" and adds additional observations.
  • "Our thirst for power has a dark side" is about the relationship between the ever increasing demand for electricity and the disruption of the aboriginal way of life in Canada's north, with the spin-off social problems this creates.
  • "Consult the elders: There are rules and customs to preserve all species" proposes a way to resolve the disputes over Aboriginal fishing and logging rights by respecting the traditional Aboriginal concept of stewardship.
  • "A question of who really owns the land" Explores the similarities between ancient Biblical ideas of the land and Aboriginal beliefs.
  • Theology of the Drum: test case for Gospel and Culture. * An exploration of how and whether Christ can transform cultural artifacts like drums. Examples from Africa are cited.
  • Richard Twiss quotes from some of the stories told here (*) in his book Five Hundred Years of Bad Haircuts, and develops it further for the context of indigenous Christianity in North America. This book has recently been republished under the title: One Church Many Tribes: Following Jesus the Way God Made You. You can find this book at http://www.wiconi.com/ follow the links to "products," and "books."

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this page was last updated on April 10, 2003