The Pipe & Christ

I agree with the last reviewer of this book, this book is great and the Lakota people involved in the proses of putting the notes together for this book were well respected by their people so it has integrity. What I also like was the fact that the author William Stolzman did not let his belief in the message of Christ turn the book into a "what's wrong with the Lakota belief system". He shows a great respect for both these views of religious life and he does not try to add or take away from either, although he does show that these traditions can work together to bring a person to a deeper relationship with their Creator. I found it a great read and it will find a permeant place on my book shelf. You do need to have a real interest in the subject but as has been said before it is not a hard read. Get it and enjoy!!!!!

I loved this book. Even though I am a Christian, I have always admired the values nurtured by Native American religion and I have always wanted to know more about it. This book is for serious students of religion. It is not at all hard to read, but some might find parts of it dry. You have to bring a deep interest in the issues. This book is and extended discussion of the question: Are Christianity and Lakota Souix religions compatible or competitive. Can a person participate in both religions without harm to his primary religious affiliation? Because so many Christians and native Americans on the Lakota Souix reservation were participating in both religions, the Christian pastors and medicine men formed a discussion group to explore the question. They met every 2 weeks for 6 years. As they approached each issue, their aim was to elevate understanding...not to convert each other. For me, the best part of the book was the description of how they related to each other with the deepest respect. Achieving mutual understanding was difficult because of the vast differences in their languages and ways of expressing themselves. Their images were so different! These images had to be broken open to get at the underlying experiences. The amazing thing is that they succeeded in doing this. The process helped both the pastors and the medicine men understand their own faiths better. It also defined where each could/could not make adjustments.