The Evolution of Aboriginal Spirituality

One of the issues with which we have been grappling in the Aboriginal Circle has been that of spirituality and what that means from a humanist lens. One of our members is a traditional pipe carrier who has considered given up his pipe because ceremonies involve prayers to a god-figure called the Creator. My own belief is that spirituality does not necessarily involve faith based religious belief and that the emphasis on The Creator who seems to resemble Jehovah in some ways, is a recent historical development. In this light, I am re-publishing an article that first appeared in Humanist Perspectives for your consideration: NativeSpirituality.pdf (hawkeyeassociates.ca).

Author

Lloyd Robertson

Lloyd Hawkeye Robertson is an Adjunct Professor of Psychology at the University of Regina. His main professional interest has been on the evolution and structure of the self. He has also published on the psychological impacts of Indian residential schools, the use of a community development process to combat youth suicide, the construction of the (North American) aboriginal self, the concept of free will in psychotherapy, and male stigma as it affects men’s identity. He is currently President of the New Enlightenment Project: A Canadian Humanist Initiative.