From the survivor, to the first and second generation to not attend Indian Residential Schools
Anonda Canadien (Dehcho Dene) (she/her) // Arts and Culture Editor
Anna Israfilova (she/her) // Illustrator
For many Indigenous communities and cultures, religious faith has been incorporated within traditions of the various Indigenous nations across the colonial state of Canada. Within this context, we’ll be speaking specifically within the colonial state of Canada and the various cultures and tribes within Canada. The history of Indigenous peoples within Canada is long, harsh and violent. When assimilation began, the government in association with the church (whether that be Roman Catholic, Christianity, Pentecostal, etc.) put into motion Indian Residential Schools and Indian Day School, eventually leading into the Sixties Scoop, the ongoing issue of MMIWGTS+ and the overall effort of genocide of Indigenous peoples.
Here is what it comes down to: You either believe in the church while still being involved with your culture, or you completely reject the notion of religious faith and go back to the ‘roots’ of your culture. I paraphrase this ‘roots’ as it has been muddied over what is the root of a culture by the severe consequences of assimilation. Through the centuries of abuse from when the first colonizer set foot in the Americas of 1492, religious faith has been incorporated into many Indigenous cultures such as traditions and practices, customs and—most notably—creation stories.
Indigenous-based churches across Canada include the Indigenous Alliance Churches of Canada, the Indigenous Ministries of The Anglican Church of Canada and the Indigenous Ministries of The United Church of Canada to name a few. They all have similar quotes surrounding their faith in God while also being ‘spiritually-centered’ within their practice, and they strive for reconciliation of Indigenous peoples within their associations through funding. This isn’t to say religion is a bad thing, but rather in the eyes of the new generation of Indigenous youth who have not been within the Indian Residential School system, this is a new concept of dissecting what it means to be traditional, urban or rezzed out without religion being involved within their culture.
This editor has gathered some peers on their view of religion being incorporated as a means of survival of assimilation within their own respective culture.
“Of course when two worlds collide like when Europe and Turtle Island did, things are going to be exchanged, like religion. […] We weren’t the ones sailing across the water to go impose the Great Spirit on them,” says Elijah Chenoweth, a fourth-year student in the Motion Picture Arts program and of Indigenous heritage. As a first-generation Indigenous man, he’s the first in his family to not have attended residential school.
An important aspect that he relies on is the notion that the beliefs held by most Indigenous peoples are not just beliefs, they’re realities for them. “For example, many chiefs around my community in the past have really talked a lot of giving Christianity a way better word than they did their own beliefs that we had before, which were that everything’s alive…when you have people in power just promoting a system that was beaten into us, you’re gonna create a cycle of helplessness.”
When these ideals of religion carry over into the culture from Indian Residential School, it’s inevitable for it to become part of it within traditions and customs. For Chenoweth, he speaks about culture from an urban perspective of not being engaged or grown up within his culture, but still carries the beliefs and values taught to him by his family. And, how a lot of the mainstream media has pushed the narrative of religion being the be all, end all.
“We respect Jesus (figure), just like how Willie Jack (Reservation Dogs) says, like, ‘What’s up, White Jesus?’ But, of course, the Christians aren’t always the same way towards people who believe in more of our ancestral beliefs,” Chenoweth references the character Willie Jack from the beloved show Reservation Dogs that explores Indigenity on screen.
An alumnus of the Indigenous Digital Filmmaking (IDE) program at Capilano University and current employee as the Gear Technician for the aforementioned program, Joshua Settee-Brown is of Indigenous heritage and has mentioned that he is second generation to not attend an Indian Residential School.
“I have witnessed many Indigenous folks practicing Catholicisms and going to church. . . it makes me feel a bit sad that we had our own religion of sorts and then it was abused out of us,” he mentioned the spirituality that was connected to various Indigenous nations that was ultimately replaced with religion depending on the region of the Indian Residential School.
On how it is to witness the ever ongoing discourse of this, he states that, “to see these communities get forced into this religion from actual centuries of abuse and if they didn’t conform they would be abused worse than they already were.” As a means of survival, religion has been incorporated into various cultures.
As we look at the different sides to this discussion, neither is necessarily a bad thing. We have the survivor of Indian Residential School looking into religious faith as a means to survive, to carry some aspect of their culture whether it be language or practices and customs, and we also have the first generation to not attend Indian Residential School and looking to explore their cultures belief in Creator, a spirituality connected to various Indigenous cultures and nations.
As for the way forward, Chenoweth believes we must return to our roots, “I’d like to see more of a connection. Within me and within more people too, because I don’t think Christianity serves many of us that well. Of course, it can serve us in some ways, but it’s best if it’s made for that space.” He’d like to see more young Indigenous people connect and continue this discourse within their communities.
For Settee-Brown, he shares the same sentiments: “I think today there needs to be more focus on reviving our cultural and spiritual beliefs and let people who come from trauma of being forced into a religion have a choice of their own.”