Synopses & Reviews
In this interdisciplinary collection of essays, Joel W. Martin and Mark A. Nicholas gather emerging and leading voices in the study of Native American religion to reconsider the complex and often misunderstood history of Native people's engagement with Christianity and with Euro-American missionaries. Surveying mission encounters from contact through the mid-nineteenth century, the volume alters and enriches our understanding of both American Christianity and indigenous religion.
The essays here explore a variety of post-contact identities, including indigenous Christians, "mission friendly" non-Christians, and ex-Christians, thereby exploring the shifting world of Native-white cultural and religious exchange. Rather than questioning the authenticity of Native Christian experiences, these scholars reveal how indigenous peoples negotiated change with regard to missions, missionaries, and Christianity. This collection challenges the pervasive stereotype of Native Americans as culturally static and ill-equipped to navigate the roiling currents associated with colonialism and missionization.
The contributors are Emma Anderson, Joanna Brooks, Steven W. Hackel, Tracy Neal Leavelle, Daniel Mandell, Joel W. Martin, Michael D. McNally, Mark A. Nicholas, Michelene Pesantubbee, David J. Silverman, Laura M. Stevens, Rachel Wheeler, Douglas L. Winiarski, and Hilary E. Wyss.
Review
"Martin and Nicholas' valuable essay collection . . . incorporates multiple disciplines, including history, religious studies, Native American studies, anthropology, and literary studies. . . . Each essay is well researched, eloquently written, and significant to the understanding of Native experiences in and with Christianity. An important contribution to a variety of disciplines, most importantly US Christianity, Native peoples and U.S. history. Highly recommended."
-Choice
Review
"[An] outstanding collection of twelve essays....[which] break new ground because they are the product of serious, insightful, and well-grounded scholarship."
-Church History
Review
"These essays contribute valuably to a healthy scholarship on indigenous Christianities . . . . [and] capture a crucial insight."
-Catholic Historical Review
Review
"An important, wide-ranging, and insightful collection of essays. Readers interested in cross-cultural exchange, and in the history of Christianity in early America will benefit from its ideas and findings."
-Journal of Southern Religion
Synopsis
In this interdisciplinary collection of essays, Martin and Nicholas gather emerging and leading voices in the study of Native American religion to reconsider the complex and often misunderstood history of Native people's engagement with Christianity and with Euro-American missionaries. Surveying mission encounters from contact through the mid-nineteenth century, the volume alters and enriches our understanding of both American Christianity and indigenous religion.
About the Author
Joel W. Martin is Vice Provost for Academic Personnel, Dean of the Faculty, and Distinguished Professor of History at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and author of Sacred Revolt and The Land Looks After Us. Mark A. Nicholas is an independent scholar living in Philadelphia.