Songs of Power and Prayer in the Columbia Plateau: The Jesuit, the Medicine Man, and the Indian Hymn Singer

By Chad Hamill

Book Overview

Songs of Power and Prayer in the Columbia Plateau explores the role of song as a transformative force in the twentieth century, tracing a cultural, spiritual, and musical encounter that upended notions of indigeneity and the rules of engagement for Indians and priests in the Columbia Plateau. In Chad Hamill's narrative, a Jesuit and his two Indian "grandfathers"--one a medicine man, the other a hymn singer--engage in a collective search for the sacred. The priest becomes a student of the medicine man. The medicine man becomes a Catholic. The Indian hymn singer brings indigenous songs to the Catholic mass. Using song as a thread, these men weave together two worlds previously at odds, realizing a promise born two centuries earlier within the prophecies of Circling Raven and Shining Shirt. Songs of Power and Prayer reveals how song can bridge worlds: between the individual and Spirit, the Jesuits and the Indians. Whether sung in an indigenous ceremony or adapted for Catholic Indian services, song abides as a force that strengthens Native identity and acts as a conduit for power and prayer. A First Peoples: New Directions in Indigenous Studies book

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0870716751
• ISBN13: 9780870716751
• Release Date: May 2012
• Publisher: Oregon State University Press
• Length: 168 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.1" x 9.0"