Will Arson Attack Cause Holy War Between Born-Agains and Natives? - ICTMN.com

What right does anyone have in judging another belief system?? another pissing contest of my god bigger than your god and my god is the only god that is true,,,

Most of the burned structures were used for traditional ceremonies and healing, and DeMain says the message is clear: “Someone is attacking traditionalism in the community.”

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Christopher Grover, an LCO tribal member, was reportedly arrested not long after as a “person of interest” in the cases. Grover, 38, has ties to local evangelicals who embrace elements of a growing ideological movement that has been known to equate  traditional Native spirituality with a dangerous form of idolatry, even witchcraft. This idolatry, some believe, is responsible for the social ills in Indian country. This ideology is rooted in the teachings of the New Apostolic Reformation movement (NAR), which has aggressively been targeting both mainstream denominational evangelical churches such as the Assemblies of God, as well as small nonaffiliated Christian evangelical groups. Some of these NAR-linked organizations present a benign front—such as pastor prayer networks or Christian reconciliation groups—and at the local level are sometimes presented as charitable organizations.

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The Transformations video series has been described by some as a major promotional tool for the advancement of the NAR agenda; it has been seen by many members of the evangelical community, including one at the LCO Assemblies of God church where, Grover’s mother says, she, her son and her husband are members. The videos depict spiritual warriors taking control of communities by expelling demons that cause societal problems. After territorial demons are driven out and generational curses are removed, the communities are healed and experience a miraculous recovery from poverty, disease and other problems. The videos, produced by the Sentinel Group, a ministry group founded by George Otis Jr., are reportedly marketed as documentaries and depict reenactments of various indigenous people burning traditional religious items in order to free their community from demons.

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The slick feel-good nature of the videos belies the aggressive message of intolerance for any spiritual practice that deviates from the NAR’s ideology of Dominionism, which has been described as the belief that Christians are designated by God to take dominion over every aspect of culture, government and politics in order to bring about the return of Jesus Christ.

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During a recent interview, Bigpond was reluctant to discuss his role in the destruction of Native ritual objects, and described the acts as symbolic rather than literal. Although Bigpond does not advocate destruction of ritual objects owned by others, he did say, “Witchcraft is alive and well in Indian country, and it must be rooted out.”

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The fires at LCO have sparked concern and debate among members as they realize they are not fully informed about the spiritual beliefs and practices of their neighbors. Overall, in Indian country, where politeness discourages direct questioning regarding spirituality, people are beginning to have some difficult discussions regarding religious practices and beliefs.

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Journalists with Right Wing Watch and Talk2Action have researched links between the beginnings of the federal Native American Apology resolution and the New Apostolic Reformation movement. The resolution, which was attached to a defense appropriations bill in 2010, stated in part that “the United States, acting through Congress…recognizes that there have been years of official depredations, ill-conceived policies, and the breaking of covenants by the Federal Government regarding Indian tribes.”

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“This is a movement growing in popularity, and one of the ways they’ve been able to do that is because they’re not very identifiable to most people. They present themselves as nondenominational or just Christian-but the New Apostolic Reformation is an identifiable movement with an identifiable ideology,” Tabachnick says. “Nondenominational should not be confused with interdenominational, which indicated an openness to accepting other faiths.”

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Andrea Smith observes, however, that for Native peoples, culture and spirituality cannot be separated; they are a part of everyday life. The notion of respecting Native culture while simultaneously condemning spirituality, she notes, contributes to a practice that inevitably pits Native Christians against Native traditionalists.

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 She adds that most Americans know nothing about the agenda of the Christian right and typically brush off concerns about their activities, dismissing them as backward. Many people who are linked to the New Apostolic Reformation movement, however, are very sophisticated, she says. “They have developed a community organizing agenda that is incredible and is working very well for them.”

Will Arson Attack Cause Holy War Between Born-Agains and Natives? - ICTMN.com