Article Added On: August 29, 2009 - 11 months ago
Title: Aboriginals, churches share a mutual respect
Original URL: http://www.vancouversun.com/life/Aboriginals+churches+share+mutual+respect/1937863/story.html
Author: DOUGLAS TODD
Publication: Vancouver Sun
Publication Date: August 28, 2009 - 11 months ago
Faith Groups: Roman Catholic
Themes: Religion and society, other

Abstract:

Christianity remains a major part of native peoples' lives, despite grim legacy, overlooked polls reveal

Canada's aboriginals are surprisingly forgiving toward the Christian church.

Many are magnanimous even while other Canadians condemn the Christian church for trying to convert aboriginals and for operating the residential schools attended by more than 125,000 of them.

The cases of sexual, physical and emotional abuse that have risen out of the government-funded schools for aboriginals, which were run by the Catholic, Anglican and United churches and the Salvation Army, have been horrifying, provoking headlines for about 20 years.

Given this grim church legacy, you would think virtually all of Canada's 1.2 million aboriginals would have long ago angrily turned their backs on the Catholic and mainline Protestant churches.

However, despite the widespread criticism of the colonization of Canada began more than 500 years ago by European missionaries and settlers, most aboriginals do not hate Christianity.

In fact, it turns out aboriginals are about as loyal to Christianity as other Canadians, in some cases more so, according to newly uncovered reports.

For aboriginals, who make up about four per cent of Canadians (five per cent of British Columbians), churches often remain a big part of life.

A little-known Census Canada document shows two out of three Canadian aboriginals consider themselves Christian. Forty per cent self-identify as Roman Catholic and 28 per cent as Protestant.

Among Protestant aboriginals, the numbers break down to 13 per cent Anglican, eight per cent Lutheran, six per cent United Church and three per cent Pentecostal, plus five per cent Mormon.

Perhaps more surprisingly, aboriginal teenagers have not rejected the churches that ran the rigid residential schools attended by their parents and grandparents.

A new survey of more than 800 Canadian native Indian teenagers has discovered one in two "value" Christianity.

Remarkably, the portion of aboriginal teenagers who say they trust in church and other religious leaders (54 per cent) is higher than the trust levels in such leaders expressed by non-aboriginal Canadian young people (39 per cent).

The unique study of teens living both on and off reserves, by Canadian sociologist of religion Reginald Bibby, found most aboriginal teens blend their commitment to Christianity with aboriginal spirituality.

For instance, even though more than one out of two teens attending aboriginal schools said they trusted church leaders, even more, three out of four, trusted their communities' "traditional ceremonies."

Indeed, a snapshot of aboriginal teens found them to be highly spiritual. Eighty-five per cent of aboriginal teens believe "all living things have a spirit," 78 per cent believe in God or a Creator (11 percentage points higher than the national teen average) and 64 per cent agreed that the traditional "medicine wheel," a stone circle imbued with spiritual powers, "helps me understand my life."

What can we make of aboriginals' vibrant spirituality, particularly the dogged faith old and young continue to show in Christianity?

It is partly explained by aboriginals' comfort with what scholars call religious "syncretism," the blending of beliefs and practices of multiple world views.

In Canada, syncretism shows up as the casual mixing of Christian devotion to Jesus Christ and the ritual of communion with customs such as the medicine wheel and sweetgrass ceremonies.

Aboriginals' continuing openness to Christianity could also be partly explained by how some Anglican, United Church and Oblate clergy, in the 1970s and earlier, became key activists, especially in B.C., in support of treaty claims.

In addition, for decades, top Christian church officials have been offering aboriginals apologies and financial compensation in the name of reconciliation.

Furthermore, despite all the negative press over past decades, many churches, from the Arctic to the Lower Mainland, quietly continue to work directly for aboriginals and their dreams.

These overlooked polls show that mutual respect remains considerable.