Module 2 - In the Light of Reverence

1.     What source did you review and who created it?  What perspective do you think it is meant to convey?

I chose the online resources related to In Light of Reverence as the content resonated with me.  The idea that today we mostly do not understand the importance of a sacred place.  Even our own cemeteries are not treated with the respect they deserve.  I believe that these videos are meant to convey the importance of sacred places and the connection of the indigenous peoples to the land and nature. 

In the short film there is an indigenous woman who states, “[i]f we built a building around it and said this is our building and inside this building was our sacred spring and this is how you behave in it, then maybe they would [understand] because they could see the boundaries of what is ours”.  Insightful as the non-indigenous people do not understand the boundaries of the sacred places in nature for the people and only see it as open space. 

For example, my parents raised me in the LDS religion and there is a sacred spot in Palmyra, New York not too far from my current home where it is believed that God and his son Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith.  To the practicing LDS members, this is considered sacred ground, one that should be respected and shown reverence based on the sacred nature of what took place there.  Just as the non-indigenous people lack of respect or reverence for indigenous sacred places, the non-LDS people also have this same lack of reverence for the location in Palmyra, NY and simply see it as another piece of ground. 

I ask myself, why is it that our current religions are protected by our constitution based on religious freedoms but the Native American religious freedoms are not?  I understand not allowing religious freedoms that harm other human beings but those that want to be able to follow their sacred beliefs without hurting any other human beings are not able to do so.  To me, this seems to be hypocritical on the part of the legal system.

2.     Why do you think these web resources where selected and put into this course and not others? What makes a quality academic website and do you think the website you reviewed is one?

I think these web resources were selected due to their very nature, not something that is posted as an opinion but something that is presented and documented using historical facts or experts in the particular area of study.  I do believe that the website I chose to review should be considered as a high-quality, educational link as pbs.org is meant to be an educational site providing the highest quality information to enable readers/viewers to become more enlightened on the topics discussed.

3.     Has the information you have read thus far changed, in some way, your view of native communities? 

I don’t believe that my view of the native American people as human beings has changed at all as I was raised to appreciate all humans as children of God thus making them my siblings and, as such, I should treat them the same as I do my earthly family.  My awareness of the plight of the indigenous peoples has greatly increased; not simply the information contained in the course books and the assigned online resources but also the searching that I have done online.  In addition, I find my thoughts turning to the indigenous nations as I go through my everyday life.  For example, I was in Las Vegas last week for a work conference and the heat was nearly unbearable (116 on one of the days and not a single day below 110).  From my reading, I found that the Paiute nation historically lived in the area of what is now Nevada.  While walking in the unforgiving heat, I asked, how could the Native American people have survived heat such as this without modern conveniences of running water and air conditioning?  My understanding is they moved up into the higher elevations from the desert floor during the hottest months in order to find cooler temperatures.  They stayed in these higher elevations until the first winter snow before moving back into the valley.