“The American Indian was an individualist in religion as in war. He had neither a national army nor an organized church.”
Tip: press → for another quote, C to copy, S to share.
That is, we believed, the supreme duty of the parent, who only was permitted to claim in some degree the priestly office and function, since it is his creative and protecting power which alone approaches the solemn function of Deity.
More than this, even in those white men who professed religion we found much inconsistency of conduct. They spoke much of spiritual things, while seeking only the material.
The clan is nothing more than a larger family, with its patriarchal chief as the natural head, and the union of several clans by intermarriage and voluntary connection constitutes the tribe.
The religion of the Indian is the last thing about him that the man of another race will ever understand.