Native American Church
Encyclopedia
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, and is the most widespread indigenous
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
among Native Americans in the United States. Peyotism involves the use of the entheogen
Entheogen
An entheogen , in the strict sense, is a psychoactive substance used in a religious, shamanic, or spiritual context. Historically, entheogens were mostly derived from plant sources and have been used in a variety of traditional religious contexts...
Peyote
Peyote
Lophophora williamsii , better known by its common name Peyote , is a small, spineless cactus with psychoactive alkaloids, particularly mescaline.It is native to southwestern Texas and Mexico...
, a spineless cactus
Cactus
A cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae. Their distinctive appearance is a result of adaptations to conserve water in dry and/or hot environments. In most species, the stem has evolved to become photosynthetic and succulent, while the leaves have evolved into spines...
.
History of the peyote religion
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
in pre-Columbian
Pre-Columbian
The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents, spanning the time of the original settlement in the Upper Paleolithic period to European colonization during...
times to commune with the spirit world
Spirit
The English word spirit has many differing meanings and connotations, most of them relating to a non-corporeal substance contrasted with the material body.The spirit of a living thing usually refers to or explains its consciousness.The notions of a person's "spirit" and "soul" often also overlap,...
and also as a medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
. From the mid-15th century, the use of peyote spread to the Great Plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
area of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
primarily through the efforts of the Apache, Navajo, Plains Tribes, and various tribes in the western United States. Peyotism is now practiced in more than 50 Native American tribes and has probably around 250,000 adherents.
Peyotist beliefs vary considerably from tribe to tribe, belief in Peyote personified as a god
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
called Mescalito by some practitioners, but often include belief in Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
as a Native American culture hero
Culture hero
A culture hero is a mythological hero specific to some group who changes the world through invention or discovery...
, an intercessor for man or a spiritual guardian; belief in the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
; and association of Jesus with Peyote. Peyotists believe in a supreme God. The "Peyote Road" calls for Native American brotherly love (often taking the form of Native American nationalism), family care, self-support through work, avoidance of alcohol, and avoidance of recreational drug use.
Peyote
Lophophora williamsii , better known by its common name Peyote , is a small, spineless cactus with psychoactive alkaloids, particularly mescaline.It is native to southwestern Texas and Mexico...
is used in pursuit of bona fide religious faith in daily ceremonies, and at all times. Peyote rituals can be conducted by oneself and with the Creator, or with a guide, or in a group, and at any place or time the Spirit or Creator and the participant deem them necessary. Peyote ceremonies are not conducted only in tipis or hogans however, in some cases ceremonies may be limited to a certain number of people but this varies from tribe to tribe.
For some chapters of the Native American Church, the peyote ritual begins at sundown on a Saturday and continues through the night. The ritual includes prayer
Prayer
Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of...
, the eating of peyote, Peyote song
Peyote song
Peyote songs are a form of Native American music, now most often performed as part of the Native American Church. They are typically accompanied by a rattle and water drum, and are used in a ceremonial aspect during the sacramental taking of peyote....
s, water rituals, and contemplation. It ends with breakfast Sunday morning. The peyote ritual is believed to allow communion with Holy deity or spirits, and to give power, authority, guidance, and healing. The healing may be emotional or physical, or both.
Those Church members who feel that they need structure believe that the communal ingestion of peyote and the ceremony of the Church meeting help participants get into a proper relationship with each other and with the Holy deity or spirits. In turn, they believe, this leads to an ability to live a good day-to-day life. A good life is considered to be one that is kind and responsible, and embodies harmony.
Federal law
“Use, possession, or transportation of peyote
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the use, possession, or transportation of peyote by an Indian for bona fide traditional ceremonial purposes in connection with the practice of a traditional Indian religion is lawful, and shall not be prohibited by the United States or any State. No Indian shall be penalized or discriminated against on the basis of such use, possession or transportation, including, but not limited to, denial of otherwise applicable benefits under public assistance programs.”
42 U.S.C. 1996A(b)(1).
“Definitions
For purposes of this section—
(1) the term “Indian” means a member of an Indian tribe;
(2) the term “Indian tribe” means any tribe, band, nation, pueblo, or other organized group or community of Indians, including any Alaska Native village (as defined in, or established pursuant to, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act
Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act
The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, commonly abbreviated ANCSA, was signed into law by President Richard M. Nixon on December 23, 1971, the largest land claims settlement in United States history. ANCSA was intended to resolve the long-standing issues surrounding aboriginal land claims in...
( et seq.)), which is recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians;
(3) the term “Indian religion” means any religion—
(A) which is practiced by Indians, and
(B) the origin and interpretation of which is from within a traditional Indian culture or community; and (4) the term “State” means any State of the United States, and any political subdivision thereof.”
42 U.S.C. 1996A(c)
“Protection of rights of Indians and Indian tribes
Nothing in this section shall be construed as abrogating, diminishing, or otherwise affecting—
(1) the inherent rights of any Indian tribe;
(2) the rights, express or implicit, of any Indian tribe which exist under treaties, Executive orders, and laws of the United States;
(3) the inherent right of Indians to practice their religions; and
(4) the right of Indians to practice their religions under any Federal or State law."
42 U.S.C. 1996A(d)
Accordingly, the lawful use of Peyote in the United States is limited to “Indians” who are members of “Indian Tribes”. Contrary to other erroneous decisions in various courts and even previous posting here, the existing legal exemption for Indians is only for Indians and Indian Tribes, and not for anyone else who professes similar, if not identical, religious beliefs. This exemption for Indians does not violate the First Amendment to the United States Constitution
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
, nor does it violate the Equal Protection Clause
Equal Protection Clause
The Equal Protection Clause, part of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, provides that "no state shall ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws"...
of the Fourteenth Amendment
Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments.Its Citizenship Clause provides a broad definition of citizenship that overruled the Dred Scott v...
. Morton v. Mancari
Morton v. Mancari
Morton v. Mancari, , was a United States legal case about the constitutionality, under the Fifth Amendment, of hiring preferences given to Indians within the Bureau of Indian Affairs...
, 417 U.S. 535 (1974). This is because of the unique political status of American Indians as members of sovereign nations and the plenary power of Congress over “Indian tribes”. Art.1, Sec. 8, Cl. 3. Constitution of the United States of America. It is the unique political status of Indians that is paramount in this context and political status is not a racially based classification.
State law
Currently, laws regulating peyote use by Native American Church members vary by state.The Native American Church Movement
Quanah ParkerQuanah Parker
Quanah Parker was a Comanche chief, a leader in the Native American Church, and the last leader of the powerful Quahadi band before they surrendered their battle of the Great Plains and went to a reservation in Indian Territory...
was an influence in the creation of the Native American Church. The movement started in the 1880s, and was formally incorporated in 1918 in Oklahoma. Parker adopted the peyote religion after being gored by a bull in South Texas and surviving the attack with the help of peyote. Parker was given strong peyote tea by a Coahuiltecan
Coahuiltecan
Coahuiltecan or Paikawa was a proposed language family in John Wesley Powell's 1891 classification of Native American languages that consisted of Coahuilteco and Cotoname. The proposal was expanded to include Comecrudo, Karankawa, and Tonkawa...
Native American curandera who healed him and showed him the proper way to run peyote ceremonies. Therefore, the genesis of modern NAC ceremonies have deep roots in Mexican Native American culture and ritual, due to the natural locality of Peyote and the dissemination by Parker to the Comanche
Comanche
The Comanche are a Native American ethnic group whose historic range consisted of present-day eastern New Mexico, southern Colorado, northeastern Arizona, southern Kansas, all of Oklahoma, and most of northwest Texas. Historically, the Comanches were hunter-gatherers, with a typical Plains Indian...
and other plains tribes located in Indian Territory
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
.
Parker taught that the Sacred Peyote Medicine was the Sacrament given to all Peoples by the Creator, and was to be used with water when taking communion in some Native American Church medicine ceremonies. Parker learned the "half-moon" style of the peyote ceremony from the Lipan Apache leader Chiwat. The Lipan Apache learned the ceremony from the Carrizo Coahuilteco tribe of Southern Texas(Peyote Religion by Omer Stewart). The "cross fire" ceremony (originally called the "Big Moon" ceremony) later evolved in Oklahoma (initially among the Kiowa
Kiowa
The Kiowa are a nation of American Indians and indigenous people of the Great Plains. They migrated from the northern plains to the southern plains in the late 17th century. In 1867, the Kiowa moved to a reservation in southwestern Oklahoma...
Native American) due to influences introduced by John Wilson
John Wilson (Caddo)
John Wilson was a Caddo-Delaware-French medicine man and religious leader.John Wilson's Caddo name was Nishkû'ntu, meaning "Moon Head." Though he was of half-Delaware descent, John Wilson spoke only the Caddo language and identified only as a Caddo. In 1890, he became an influential leader in the...
, a Caddo
Caddo
The Caddo Nation is a confederacy of several Southeastern Native American tribes, who traditionally inhabited much of what is now East Texas, northern Louisiana and portions of southern Arkansas and Oklahoma. Today the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma is a cohesive tribe with its capital at Binger, Oklahoma...
Native American who traveled extensively around the same time as Parker during the early days of the Native American Church movement.
The Peyoteros of South Texas
The peyote religion evolved an elaborate trade network which has persisted since pre-Columbian times, in South Texas, with designated harvesters of the peyote in Rio Grande City, TexasRio Grande City, Texas
Rio Grande City is a city in and the county seat of Starr County, Texas, United States. The population was 13,834 at the 2010 census. The city is 41 miles west of McAllen. It is the hometown of former Commander of U.S. Forces in Iraq, General Ricardo Sanchez. The city also holds the March record...
, and Mirando City, Texas
Mirando City, Texas
Mirando City is a census-designated place in Webb County, Texas, United States. The population was 493 at the 2000 census. The town gets its name from Nicolás Mirando, a Spanish land grantee. The population of Mirando City was highest in 1929, at an estimated 1500...
. The Peyoteros are a group of closely knit families of Mexican ancestry who have harvested peyote for Native Americans since the early 18th century. The modern peyoteros still harvest peyote in the same manner as their ancestors, with a machete and a very small work crew of young and sometimes old men. Peyote is harvested and dried after the crowns of the plants are removed at ground level; cut at an angle, to allow water to run off. The peyoteros never dig up peyote, but rather cut the tops of the cactus crowns at ground level with a machete. Peyote
Peyote
Lophophora williamsii , better known by its common name Peyote , is a small, spineless cactus with psychoactive alkaloids, particularly mescaline.It is native to southwestern Texas and Mexico...
plants create large taproots with an extensive root system, and the plants slowly regenerate new heads after harvest, often producing a much larger plant after several years of regrowth. Currently, Peyote is being overharvested, seriously endangering the existence of the local populations of peyote. There are only 3 licensed Peyoteros left in Texas due to overharvesting, illegal poaching, and strict licensing and tax regulations by the Texas Department of Public Safety and the U.S. Federal government. Two Peyoteros in South Texas are Mauro Morales of Rio Grande City, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, and Salvador Johnson of Mirando City, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
.
Native American are permitted to purchase peyote to supply the Native American Church both in person and via US Mails "Restricted Delivery" procedures. Special ceremonies are performed with the harvested and dried peyote medicine in order to bless it for use as a sacrament for Native American Church rituals and ceremonies.
All three of the peyoteros are licensed by the United States Drug Enforcement Agency and operate under DEA 225 permits. Peyoteros are also required to be registered with the State of Texas Department of Public Safety
Texas Department of Public Safety
The Texas Department of Public Safety is a department of the government of the state of Texas. The DPS is responsible for statewide law enforcement and vehicle regulation. The Public Safety Commission oversees the DPS. Its five members are appointed by the Governor of Texas and confirmed by the...
, for a fee over $1,200 per year in a poverty stricken area of south Texas. Legitimate Native American Church Branches are required to register with the Texas Department of Public Safety in order to purchase, harvest, transport, or cultivate peyote. Non-Native American churches not affiliated with Federally Recognized Tribal entities are not eligible for registration with the Texas Department of Public Safety at this time.
See also
- Employment Division v. SmithEmployment Division v. SmithEmployment Division, Department of Human Resources of Oregon v. Smith, 494 U.S. 872 , is a United States Supreme Court case that determined that the state could deny unemployment benefits to a person fired for violating a state prohibition on the use of peyote, even though the use of the drug was...
- Freedom of thoughtFreedom of thoughtFreedom of thought is the freedom of an individual to hold or consider a fact, viewpoint, or thought, independent of others' viewpoints....
- Hair dropHair dropA hair drop is an ornament worn by men from Great Lakes and Plains tribes. It would be tied to the man's hair. The typical example consists of a quilled or beaded section on a strip of leather, which was later attached to an American buffalo tail...
, Native American Church regalia - Indigenous peoples of the AmericasIndigenous peoples of the AmericasThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
- The red roadThe red roadThe red road is a pan-Indian concept of the right path of life, as inspired by some of the beliefs found in a variety of Native American spiritual teachings...
External links
- Native American Church
- Native American Church of Strawberry Plains Tennessee
- Listing of Native American Churches
- Peyote Way
- American Ethnography – The use of Peyote by the Carrizo and Lipan Apache tribes
- American Ethnography – A description of a Tonkawa peyote meeting held in 1902
- – colorado branch of oklevueha N.A.C.