Introduction

“Then the angel showed me a river, as pure and clear as crystal, and it went out from the throne of God, and of the Lamb, and on each side of the river, in the middle of the city thereof, was a Tree of Life, whose leaves were for the healing of the nations.” (Rev. 22:1).

Innerriver Ministries was established in the year 2000 as a faith-based 501(c)(3), with a pastoral board of directors, each having their own strengths and complimentary objectives. Over time it evolved to become a Headwaters Foundation for the purpose of identifying, training, and promoting Native Christian ministries. While its organization served as a useful blueprint for others to follow, the original vision of Innerriver was the calling of First Nations peoples to the Good Red Road, and their spiritual re-empowerment through Christ.

It is for that reason that Innerriver has chosen to host CoopStick Ichcapixqui (Chaplain), not only because of its contextual similarity with Innerriver, but because of Coopstick’s universal appeal and call to action. And, in a unique way, it serves to better articulate the cause of Christ, because it directly relates to the prophetic relationship between the Indigenous peoples of the Americas and those countless others who have come to the land of the Condor and Eagle seeking refuge from the oppressors of the world.

Regarding “streams in the desert”, the fate of what is often referred to as “Turtle Island”, or America, becomes central, because, as history shows, America has not always honored its own commitments. Yet, placing the blame where it inevitably belongs, it is “we the people” that ultimately bear the responsibility for not having prevented it. And how, you might ask? By Counting Coop against the adversary of those freedoms we hold so dear, through a transformation of our hearts, and standing in resistance to anything that runs counter to the Word of Life. Yet in that, we’re not alone, as Native America, an emergent grass-roots Christianity, and the US Special Forces have something in common. Not only are they homegrown, but they share a common sense of duty to meet the enemy on the field of battle. For Native America, in defense of traditional culture and land, for Christianity, in defense of liberty and justice, and for the Special Forces, in direct opposition to tyranny and oppression, whether at home or abroad.

And, it is in that context that Coopstick Christiana emerged, and the subject of political theology often arises, as Christology, by its very nature, serves to speak truth to power. While politics is commonly seen as necessarily separate from religion, for the sake of political expediency, it is the ethical and moral component of religious theology that provides the contextual subjectivity so often lacking in political discourse. And, by framing political theology from an Indigenous perspective, an exegesis can then be developed which not only seizes the high ground, but echoes the egalitarian warrior ethos of Native America as well.

Referring to myself as a Na Da’isha Dene, Native Christian Chaplain, and, reiterating what was spoken over me at the time of my “second baptism”, “The Lord has called me from my mother’s womb, and made mention of my name among her people. He has made my mouth like a sharpened sword. In the shadow of his hand He has concealed me, and like a polished shaft within in His quiver, He has hidden me.” (Is. 49:1,2)

Although much of what I predicted over the past twenty years is only now coming to pass, little has occurred during that time to dissuade me from what I believed to be the inevitable uprising of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, who would once again walk The Holy Road, and in doing so, unite them in the common cause of Christ, which is freedom! While Indigenous people are often seen as emblematic of the poverty and suffering many endure as a result of social marginalization, natural resource privatization and political exploitation, they are in fact also representative of the vast majority who are now poised to suffer a similar fate. And yet, there still remain many among the so-called herd who are neither buffaloed nor cowed, and who now see resistance as the only possible alternative to a future prospect of beef rations and filthy blankets. For them, the phrase “going off the Rez” has taken on new meaning, as reflecting upon their own vulnerability they have come to realize what Indians have known all along–they are in a supernatural fight for their life, against “a power” who is the very antithesis of “la Vida“. Because, as Russel Means said: “We’re all Indians now!” Quill