A Special Place To Worship by Elder Richard Hensley

A very good question has been asked of the Indian Ministry Council of the Americas (IMCA). The question is: "Why do the Native Americans need their own place of worship, why can't they come into our Restoration Branches and worship in our churches?" This question was specifically asked because of plans by IMCA to build a Gathering Center (a hogan-style building) for the Native Americans to come, meet and worship in.

There are several good reasons why the Native Americans do not feel comfortable in our (white culture) worship settings. Perhaps the following illustration will adequately help answer those questions.

Imagine that the Russians have defeated our military forces and now occupy the United States. Suddenly, the Russian government comes to Independence and declares: "All people living in North Independence will attend the Catholic Church -- you will all be Catholics. All people living in East Independence will be Methodists and will attend the Methodist Church. Everyone in South Independence will attend the Presbyterian Church and so on." Each section will be assigned a religion and you have no say nor choice. You are further instructed to burn the Book of Mormon, Inspired Version, and Doctrine and Covenants. You will be severely punished if you are caught with any of these books or practicing any Restoration religious activities.

After your religion has been assigned to you, the Russian government officials take your children and put them in communist boarding schools. You do not know where they are taking your children or when you will ever see them again.

The community in which you live has no jobs available and you are now dependent upon a very meager check from the state each month. You cannot continue to maintain your community and your community becomes a slum. You are kept in this community and one day some Russian Methodists come and say, "come and worship in our church." The Russian Catholics say, "No, you must belong to the Catholic Church to be saved." Secretly, you want to be a Restorationist and worship like your forefathers did. But you are told all Mormons will go to hell and bum. You are told you must become good Russian Communists to be saved.

Would you trust these Russians? Especially if these Russians had made 368 different treaties and broken every one of them, would you trust them? You would probably say, "Russian speak with forked tongue."

I hope this illustration helps to show why Native Americans have a such hard time being in our culture and setting in our religious settings to worship. Right or wrong, we do not have the right to dictate how people should worship. There is no doctrinal or spiritual direction as to how to worship God. Can we say our "canned" Protestant worship services are the correct way to worship? How can we say they are, when our Elders are commanded to preside over every meeting as they are led by the Holy Ghost and we do it not? (read Moroni 6:9) We must remove the beam from our own eye before we attempt to remove the mote from our brother's eye.

I do not believe that we are a saintly, model society who are living a Zionic way of life; and therefore, we cannot yet say, "Come up to Zion and learn of her ways." Yes, God blesses us in our worship experiences many times; not because we have some perfect way of worship, but because He loves us as He loves all His children. We have the fullness of the gospel, but do we keep all its commandments? We have the authoritative priesthood, but do we function as God wants us to?

Native Americans, like us, have symbols that they use in their worship. We have symbols such as the bread and wine, consecrated oil, laying on of hands, etc. The Native Americans have such symbols as the Eagle feather, burning of the cedar or sweet grass, smoking of the sacred tobacco (Indian herb) or peace pipe. Each tribe has its own story about these symbols. One such story was related to me by an Indian holy man in Canada. He told me that the Indian people see God or the creator in every aspect of creation. (read DC 85: 10c) He believed that everything has a spirit. (read Genesis 2:4,9,11,25,26) He does not worship the works of God, but rather he respects God's creation.

The Indian lives with nature; the white man struggles to subdue it. The Anglo has little or no respect for God's creation. Each tribe has in their own language a name for God; Wakea, Wahkan, Wakan-tonka, Worachus, Yohowa, Chihowa, Eemeshee, Eeseecotl. But to all, He is known as the Great Spirit for there is none like unto Him.

The Eagle reminds the Indian of the "all seeing and knowing creator" high in the heavens. An eagle can fly so high that you can barely see him, yet he can see a small field mouse or rabbit in the grass far below. The eagle seems to have the respect of all the other winged creatures. So, to the Indian, the eagle is a symbol of God. When an Indian holds an eagle feather in his hand to pray, he is reminded of whom he is talking with and how great and almighty his God is.

The cedar reminds the Indian of the eternal nature of God. The cedar, an evergreen, never dies out in the winter or loses its leaves. It stays green and alive. When it is placed upon the coals of the sacred fire, its smoke rises with the offered prayer. It is a reminder that God, the Great Spirit, hears every prayer that arises up to Him. The aromatic smell of the cedar is I a reminder of His love for all mankind. (Rev 8: 1-4; 5:8)

When an Indian prays facing each direction, he is remembering all God's children; the : yellow, white, red and black races of mankind. I have become acquainted with many of these r symbols and the different ways the Indian worships. In some of them I can feel the power of God's spirit; in others, I can not feel His presence and can not participate in them. In much the same way, there are Christian churches that I do not attend because I do not feel the presence of the Spirit. Nevertheless, this does not mean I condemn all Christian churches nor do I condemn all Native American ways of worship.

I have learned that if we show respect for the Indian cultures and ways of worship, they are much more open and willing to listen to what we have to say. They also expect us to be willing to listen to what they have to say.

Sometimes we may have to spend time just visiting, getting acquainted and learning about their ways before they are ready to hear what we believe about God. We must earn their trust.

It is important that we walk softly among this bruised and broken people who have been dominated, lied to, cheated and kept in poverty for so many years. If we go in the spirit of Christ, we will be accepted. If we go in any other spirit, we will find the doors closed. If we go because we love them and desire to take to them the most precious and sacred gift, the Book of Mormon, then we will go in the spirit of Jesus Christ. On the other hand, if we go to convince them that we are right and that they need to become like the white people, giving up their cultural heritage, we will never succeed in winning their hearts to the gospel of Jesus Christ. God has always been the one who shows us by His holy spirit whatsoever things we need to lay aside and that are not pleasing to Him. It is impossible for anyone to instantly become a perfect person. We grow line upon line, precept upon precept as our conversion grows greater each day.

One other important point to remember is that the Indian people, the seed of Lehi, are also to gather to the Center Place as they are of the house of Israel. The Book of Mormon, Ether 6:1-13, states that the New Jerusalem, Zion, is to be built by the remnant of the House of Joseph, which is both Ephraim and Manassah. Ephraim will not build the New Jerusalem alone; he must have his brother Manassah, and together, they will build Zion. We cannot take the Book of Mormon to the Native Americans and not preach the gathering also. (DC 108:) Certainly it is true that the gathering cannot be implemented according to the law now, but many are being led by the Spirit to move up to the land of Zion because the time is short. Why should Manassah or any other tribe be excluded from the call of a Zionic city. We must tell all to prepare to gather (when the time is right.)

The land that the Indian Ministries Council of the Americas (IMCA) has acquired is to be a spiritual gathering center so that the spiritual leaders from all tribes my come up to the land of Zion and learn of the covenants and promises made to them by God in their sacred record. They also have many prophecies which they can share with each other of these latter times. It will be a powerful day when the spiritual leaders of all the tribes come together, completing the sacred circle. It will be even a more powerful day when Ephraim hands the scepter of power (priesthood) to his brother, Manassah. They have such a great faith; truly, they shall blossom as a rose.

It is my prayer that we can catch the vision of this great work which is now at the threshold of coming to pass. The field is truly white for harvest, but the laborers are few. Please support this missionary endeavor as the doors are now being opened.