“The problem they had to solve was the same as any messianic movement: how to exist with an alien culture yet remain spiritually autonomous.”

—  Peter Farb

Man's Rise to Civilization (1968)
Context: The Ghost Dance made its unfulfillable promises at a time when the Indians were ready to rebel. The teachings of the Native American Church spread at a time when the Indians were ready to admit defeat.... The problem they had to solve was the same as any messianic movement: how to exist with an alien culture yet remain spiritually autonomous. The solution had been to borrow freely from White culture while salvaging what is considered important in Indian religious thought.<!-- p. 269

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Peter Farb 92
American academic and writer 1929–1980

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