The heavens are changing : nineteenth-century Protestant missions and Tsimshian Christianity / Susan Neylan.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Neylan, Susan, 1966-

Series:

McGill-Queen's native and northern series ; 31.

McGill-Queen's native and northern series ; 31

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Tsimshian Indians--Missions--History--19th century.

Tsimshian Indians.

Tsimshian Indians--Religion--19th century.

Protestant churches--Missions--British Columbia--Pacific Coast--History--19th century.

Protestant churches.

Physical Description:

xvii, 401 p. : ill., maps ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Montreal : McGill-Queen's University Press, c2003.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

In The Heavens Are Changing Susan Neylan offers a fresh perspective on Aboriginal encounters with Protestant missions, exploring how the Tsimshian in nineteenth-century British Columbia took an active and important role in shaping forms of Christianity and, in turn, were shaped by them. She examines the nature of Protestant missions in their first generation on the north coast of British Columbia (1857-1901), focusing on the Aboriginal roles in Christianization. She pays special attention to the Euro-Canadian missionary perspective, the viewpoints of First Nations themselves, and particular events that illuminate the negotiation of Christian identities, such as forms of worship, naming practices, and mission housing. While the Euro-Canadian record dominates historical missionary sources, Aboriginal writings illustrate both a genuine evangelicalism and an indigenized Christianity. Christian meanings were constantly challenged from both within and without the mission context through revivalism and group evangelism. Neylan interprets the relationship forged between Tsimshian and Euro-Canadian missionary as a dialogue, although not necessarily a mutually beneficial one. The process by which power was unequally distributed through missionization exposes the extent to which the social and cultural meanings of Tsimshian daily life were contested and negotiated in encounters with Christianity.

Contents:

Front Matter

Contents

Illustrations

Abbreviations

Acknowledgments

Introduction

The Spiritual Dimensions of Tsimshian Culture

“Driftwood” on Their Shores and the Mission to Convert

Proselytizing from within: The Native Christian and Catechist

“Until the Gospel Came and Lifted Her”: Perspectives on Christian Native Women and Families

Native Missionaries

The Self-reflections of Arthur Wellington Clah

Prophets, Revivals, and Evangelists

The Politics of Everyday Life

Christian Houses and Colonial Spaces

Conclusion

Epilogue: Christian Identities and Battling Colonialism

Appendices

Appendix A

Appendix B

Appendix C

Appendix D

Appendix E

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

ISBN:

1-282-86023-2

9786612860232

0-7735-6995-2

OCLC:

929120810