Inuit Religion Essay

Words: 2681
Pages: 11

Inuit religion has been around for as long as there have been Inuit. The Inuit religion is not the same as it was a thousand years ago. A thousand years ago the Inuit religion was basically referred to as animism. Animism is the belief that everything has a soul, including the animals (Watson, Bratton, no date). The Inuit religion of the past was centered on myths, rituals and beliefs. The Inuit religion of today has changed from worshiping and praying to several spiritual Gods to worshiping only God the Father in Heaven. The change in their beliefs started long before they ever laid eyes on the white man (R. Carleton, personal communication, 1-26-07). The Inuit Church service that this author feels that the Inuit have a real sense of …show more content…
Carleton). When asked about what important holidays and traditions there are in the Inuit Religion, she stated that they celebrate all the same ones as we do down here. Her husband Boyd brought up that in the winter they have a winter games. Reepa mentioned that in the spring they have a celebration of spring, where people get together to dance and play games. She also mentioned that during other times during the year they get together and dance and play games (R. Carleton). Reepa said she did not have any real challenges while she was living in her community in Nunavut. Her challenges started when she moved away from her Inuit community. She has found it to be more challenging to practice her faith down here in Ottawa. She stated she believed the reason may be because many people down here have not been brought up believing in God and to have faith (R. Carleton). When asked if she believed that the Inuit have kept their traditional values, she stated that, her ancestors welcomed that, at a time in their lives, her people knew they had to make a change. It was when the Inuit people had a revelation that there is a God out there who is higher than something that they believed in before. Reepa said that the conversion in her family and their community started back