Ep. 54: Thoughts on Religion and Indigeneity

This episode begins by attempting to tackle some bigger questions
about religion, belief, and spirituality. I share some different
approaches to analysing religion using thinkers like Talal Asad
and Émile Durkheim, in order to explore concepts like ‘religion’
itself and the ‘sacred’ and ‘profane’. I also consider Indigenous
Reflections on Christianity to explore the tensions and
compromises with religion (Christianity) and Indigenous peoples,
including ideas from Vine Deloria Jr. and John Trudell. The
second half of this episode focuses in on the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mainstream Mormonism; Latter-day
Saints) and Indigenous peoples. This section is a response and
extension to the Red Nation’s Unsettling Mormonism’s episode from
a few years ago. I seek to highlight Indigenous scholars who have
been and continue to interrogate questions at the intersection of
Mormon and Indigenous Studies (see list below). I conclude with
an introduction to some of my own analyses of “Lamanites”
(Mormonism’s category of 'New World' Indigeneity). I position
Mormonism and Indigeneity within larger structures and colonial
contexts drawing from the articles A Divine Rebellion, and Pedro
and Pita Built Peter Priesthood’s Mansion and Now They Work the
Grounds.


 


Terms: Religion, Spiritual, Cult/us/ure, Collective
Effervescence, Profane, Sacred.


 


Intellectuals who explore Indigeneity, race, and 'Lamanites' in
Mormon Studies: Elise Boxer, Farina King, Gina Colvin, P. Jane
Hafen, Angelo Baca, Hokulani Aikau, Hemopereki Simon, Robert
Joseph, Darren Parry, Moroni Benally, Ignacio Garcia, Armando
Solorzano, Cynthia Connell, Sujey Vega, Eduardo Pagan, Stephanie
Griswold, Lacee Harris, Sarah Newcomb, Monika Crowfoot, Michael
Ing.


 


Additional References:


Rastafari as a Counter-Hegemonic Social Movement by Lianne Mulder


Roots, Reggae, Rebellion by BBC


Look to the Mountain by Gregory Cajete


Why do people join cults? By Janja Lalich


Music and Identity by Simon Frith


In the Light of Reverence Film


Transit of Empire by Jodi Byrd


Lamanite Generations by Farina King