Tag: God is Red

Lessons from Indigenous Peoples’ Day

October 17th, 2024

So, this past Monday was Indigenous Peoples’ Day… a day created to recognize Native Americans and to move away from recognizing Columbus Day.

As to be expected (social media facilitating what amounts to one massive pool of “letters to the editor”), it’s not something that settles well with everyone. There’s a range of arguments against moving away from Columbus, including the argument that European colonization did nothing that wasn’t already being done (pre-Columbian warfare between tribes… even in the name of expansionism and/or migration). Yet, shallow responses such as these reflect shallow thinking (ok, that is snarky of me, but, sorry, not sorry).

For one, the desire to TAKE land from others to have land for “your own” is something that we all need to think about. Many who have taken DNA tests can see evidence of the practice throughout history. In my own (I’ve tested with five different companies to analyze the consistencies and inconsistencies between companies), I can see evidence of Roman, Brittonic, Anglo-Saxon, and Viking expansion (and a hint of connection to activity in the Baltic region). In the DNA world, that’s a reflection of genetic “admixture”… and it’s a story inevitably tied to human existence. You can’t escape it. It happened in the past, and it’s just going to continue. Yet, perhaps since we’ve had world history in our education, we benefit (well, many of us benefitted from learning world history, and it’s clear from social media comments that many others did not… maybe they slept through it) from being more cognizant than earlier generations (that’s probably worthy of another discussion on another day). In short, could it not be that we can better see the bigger historical picture… the injustices… and wince? I could go down a few more rabbit holes with this, but that will do for the moment.

So, let’s say that this is lesson one.

Going further, as an animist, I’m regularly looking at parallels between Native American beliefs and those of pre-Christian Europe (and other places across the globe). Perhaps what strikes me most is how different cultures across the globe came to strikingly similar spiritual conclusions, yet without traceable evidence of influence from the others. Now, don’t get me wrong… I’ve also seen how cultures adopted beliefs from other cultures, and they remolded them to better fit their people within a certain geographic area. Ultimately, because this is global, these parallels… especially when so geographically removed from each other… also suggest something that is simply… natural (even if different, strikingly similar). The point is that the stories of the spirituality of Indigenous peoples is a significant key to thinking more broadly. When we see parallels in beliefs across the globe, I argue that we see “alignment” vs. say, “having jumped the track”… natural vs. not so natural.

I think the meaning of Indigenous Peoples’ Day varies from person to person, but in the back of my head, I keep hearing a quote echoing from Vine Deloria, Jr. (God is Red, 1973)…

Who will find peace with the lands? The future of humankind lies waiting for those who will come to understand their lives and take up their responsibilities to all living things. Who will listen to the trees, the animals and birds, the voices of the places of the land? As the long forgotten peoples of the respectful continents rise and begin to reclaim their ancient heritage, they will discover the meaning of the lands of their ancestors. That is when the invaders of the North American continent will finally discover that for this land, God is red.

I see the day as an opportunity for much more profound thinking as to our existence and our connection with everything around us. It depends on how one looks at it, but it doesn’t have to be a day in which we look at a people different than ourselves and just feel sorry for them, for the injustices they experienced. If that’s all you see in the day, I think the value is missed. Think bigger. Take the stories of people, look at how our stories (think deep genetic) are actually aligned with each other, and how the problematic lessons of the past suggest how we might move forward to benefit each other and the planet on which we live. Indigenous Peoples’ Day is a gift to us all… if we listen.
Documenting a journey – rewilding self

January 9th, 2024

This has been a long time coming.

I had blogged in the past (for just over a decade), but stopping was really about shifting gears… and taking a different path altogether. Ultimately, this is about a need to return to expressing myself in “print,” but it also has much to do with organizing my thinking, making sense of it, and returning to this sort of venue. The content this time, however, is totally different from my previous works.

So, what’s this about?

As it should be, key words are in the blog title.

First, what is “Pretanī”?

It identifies a group of Bronze Age people who migrated through Europe, eventually making the way (at least most) across the Channel to what is, today, the UK and Ireland. They appear to be at the core of the Brythonic/Britonic language (an offshoot of Insular Celtic), and, according to Y DNA (that DNA passed from father to son… generation after generation… essentially a traceable lineage of the men who held a surname since the beginning of surname use… and then going much deeper, well before surnames), fall under the haplotree R-L21 (at least according to the now defunct BritainsDNA). My Y DNA is “downstream” of R-L21, and, interestingly, so is that of my maternal grandfather… not to mention a few other lines in my ancestry. But, my autosomal DNA shows I also have lines among Germanic peoples (German, Swiss, Norwegian, etc.).

But let’s stop there for just a minute. This blog isn’t about countries, flags, tartans, coats or arms, etc., etc., it’s about connections that are much deeper and frankly, richer. What strikes me in this is reconnecting with… re-identifying to… “tribalism lost.”

Consider, for example, the deep history and practices of Native Americans. I’ve seen many a non-Native American show respect to the culture, even attempting to make a claim that “Indian blood” is in their own ancestry. Tons of people seem to claim links to a tribe, an “Indian princess,” a chief, and so on… but have not one ounce of proof (and often the DNA makes the absence even more clear). Still, many admire the stories, the myths, the connections between them, and the land… the earth, sky, water, and so on.

Why?

I mean, the pursuit is understandable and admirable, but have many of us (as descendants of Europeans, for example), become so lost and wrapped-up in our being “civilized” for so many generations, that we’ve forgotten we are all actually rooted in that same sort understanding… and feeling… with and for the earth and all the elements? In fact, ALL of us are rooted in tribalistic peoples who understood those connections.

In “God is Red” (1973), Vine Deloria, Jr. wrote:

“Who will find peace with the lands? The future of humankind lies waiting for those who will come to understand their lives and take up their responsibilities to all living things. Who will listen to the trees, the animals and birds, the voices of the places of the land? As the long forgotten peoples of the respective continents rise and begin to reclaim their ancient heritage, they will discover the meaning of the lands of their ancestors. That is when the invaders of the North American continent will finally discover that for this land, God is red.”

Again, I’m not Native American, but I can appreciate where he is coming from as he was born Oglala Lakota… to make the connection between Native Americans and a Supreme Being. Yet, in a larger sense… and this isn’t argumentative, but rather, a point to be made about others and the disconnect from the same… the argument might be that, actually…

“God is Green”

… encompassing an even larger community of humans who appreciate the connection with nature and all that embodies. Further, some of us have actually connected… or are actively engaged in connecting with their own “ancient heritage”… becoming more conscious of our “long forgotten peoples of the different continents” and that community continues to grow.

Which brings us to the next word… “Rewilding”.

What does it take to reconnect with this “tribalism lost”? Of course, it’s absurd to think we drop everything and revert to life as it was some 3,000+ years ago. Rather, I see it as a process of reintegration and regular awareness. I could get much deeper on the subject of rewilding, reconnecting with ancestors, and all that, but… that’s what this blog is about. It’s about laying out a journey… my personal journey. I am, in essence, identifying my genetic tribal roots, and therefore, I am a Pretanī looking to rewild. I invite you to follow me, if you wish. There’s much to say… much to do… but until next time, peace.

*Photo of the author, Fairy Pools trail, Isle of Skye, Scotland, 2023.

Tag: God is Red

Lessons from Indigenous Peoples’ Day

Documenting a journey – rewilding self