Abstract
The resilience of indigenous (here, Native American) peoples in the face of oppression and colonization over centuries is a strength that has not been achieved without some cost—physically, psychologically, and spiritually. The effort to heal and sustain personal and cultural identity, and to deepen historical truth, is a courageous struggle but has often caused trauma, disintegration, and loss, in varying degrees of severity. Since the second half of the 20th century especially, Native American artists have been better able to document the distressing effects of colonization and marginalization, and some common elements have emerged about modalities of healing trauma, such as the importance of living in balance or ‘in harmony’—within oneself, with others, with the surrounding visible world, and with the worlds invisible and ethereal. Indigenous spirituality teaches that the damaged spirits of distressed individuals wander the earth in search of wholeness, in search of a place to settle, to anchor the spirit. Many Native American writers have proposed that the reclamation of harmony or balance can be realized through the ancient traditions of sharing stories and performing ritual ceremonies that embody such stories. Story-telling becomes a spiritual practice. This paper considers Native American wisdom that speaks to the importance of reclaiming ancient spiritual teachings as the means to realize healing from the brokenness of their people and the restoration of ‘harmony’, and among those spiritual teachings, as my paper argues, the reclamation of story-telling, and the performance of ceremonial rituals that enact such stories, are central.
Presenters
June-Ann GreeleyProfessor, Catholic Studies and Languages and Literatures, Sacred Heart University Fairfield, Connecticut, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
2026 Special Focus—Indigenous Spiritualities in Global Perspective
KEYWORDS
Native American; Spirituality; Story-telling; Ceremony and Ritual; Wisdom Teachings; Literature
