Participating in cultures that do not fully support Catholicism

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CharlesFulkerson

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So… over the past maybe half year or so, I have been getting really into some Native American cultural stuff. I AM a very small (about 13%) part Cherokee (it’s not just Cherokee culture that I am interested in however) and I have found the cultures and traditions of the Cherokee people to be very intriguing. However, the cultures that I have been most into are the Navajo and Iroquois. I have a special “connection” with Arizona and the surrounding area and I feel as if I belong there and not here in Florida, and I think this is why I love the culture of the Navajo. But my question is: would it be wrong (in a spiritual context) to attend, and participate in events such as Pow wows? I ask ask this since many tribes do not fully support Catholicism and their dances are still very traditional and some even honor their own gods. Would it be wrong to participate in these dances, not for religious but cultural reasons? Or what about playing/selling the Native American flutes that I have made?
 
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One shouldn’t participate in pagan rituals even if one doesn’t actually believe in them. Where precisely the line is best determined by asking “is this ritual intended to affirm something that I know to be false”.

It’d be a good idea to refer your questions to a priest who is knowledgeable about the tribal cultures in question.
 
I see… I geuss that makes sense.

I will make sure to ask a priest when I get the chance (probably on Sunday after mass). But I’d still like to hear the opinions of others of course.
 
Hmmm… that’s pretty cool. I’ll have to do that, maybe tomorrow. Thanks for the referral!
 
Its up to you.
The usual principles apply.

I attended the Buddhist funeral of the mother of my Malaysian Chinese sister-in-law in Kuala Lumpur.
An elaborate affair over 5 days and nights including kow tows by close family members (including myself) and Buddhist monks chanting.

Everybody knew I was a practising Christian and being involved in no way compromised that for them. In fact they were very grateful I honoured them and their mother/grandmother.

My sister in law’s sister is married to a Chinese guy who is Christian, she of course is Buddhist.
They have a small altar in their apartment, he with a statue of the Virgin, she with a statute of GuanYin. They take turns at dusting each other’s statues and offering a single set of flowers for both.

An object lesson in how they love one another despite religious differences.
 
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My friend. If you go to www.usccb.org, and under the search engine, type in “Native American powwow.” There should be a suggestion that begins with the word ‘Mercy.’ I suggest you read it.😀
By the way there are different dances at powwows and I have participated in at least one dance. It was for unity of all peoples. I think we could use a little more of that, these days. 😊 Food for thought.
 
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There is a pattern of Christians thinking that indigenous ‘religious’ are analogous to Christianity. Indigenous (by which I really mean animist) ‘Gods’ are not akin to the Catholic persons of the Trinity. They are personifications similar to the way we in the west see ‘Justice’ and actually build statues of her. See yourself not as a ‘worshipper’ but a ‘learner’ and you will be fine. Incidentally, ancestry is very binary and all ‘fractions’ of ancestry have to be divisible by two … 2,4,8.16,32,64, etc
 
Where did you learn that ancestry is binary? I study Family History, just curious.
 
As long as you know Who you’re praying to and that participating in these dances is an expression of that, it should be fine. To me it’s no different than Catholics of Jewish or Muslim heritage participating in certain rituals that don’t contradict the Faith.
 
FiveLinden said:
Incidentally, ancestry is very binary and all ‘fractions’ of ancestry have to be divisible by two … 2,4,8.16,32,64, etc
Click to expand...
I’m not sure what you mean. I took the OP’s estimate to mean that a great-grandparent was 100% Native American. That means a grandparent was 50% Native American. A parent is 25% Native American. And he is 12.5% (i.e. “about 13%”) Native American.
 
Good question. I’m thinking … many of the Native American tribes were catechized by the Catholic Church, so I’m sure there is a rich history existing from their collective experiences of how the converting priests perceived the “boundaries” (for lack of a better phrasing) of catholicism within an indigenous culture – you just need to locate a source of that knowledge. St. Katherine Drexel comes to mind. So I think you may be more successful in finding additional knowledge by say … (1) seeking information from the surviving orders of the priests and nuns who originally carried out this work, or (2) contacting an existing Indian tribe whose roots have this histiory (ie. Red Cloud Indian School, Stl Labre Indian School, St. Joseph Indian School, etc.) and asking if they can direct you? My sense is that your request is more specific than the knowledge base of an average parish priest, but it never hurts to ask. Good luck!
 
As a non-Native attending a Pow Wow, you would most likely only be allowed/invited to dance an “intertribal” which is a social dance; not a religious one. In the Iroquois culture (particularly Mohawk), as a non-Native, you would probably not even be allowed to enter the longhouse where dancing would take place, let alone being taught a social dance.

N/A flutes - There’s a difference between “native-style” and “Native-made”, but even so, owning a Native-made flute does not necessarily denote that it must be used ceremonially. If you’re not playing ceremonial music with it, I don’t see it as even being an issue.
 
I’m from New Mexico. Most of the pueblo Indians have combined their native beliefs with Catholicism.
You could also contact the Archbishop of Santa Fe. The Navajos have a beautiful tradition. You can observe.
At any rate, you can’t really participate in rituals. They are not open to the Bilagáana.
 
Yeah I noticed that lol. They are still very nice people though.
 
Exactly correct. My grandmothers mother was 100% Cherokee. So she is 50%. My father is 25%. And I am 12.5%.
 
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