Many Americans look for divinity inside a church,
temple or synagogue. But for American Indians, places of worship
exist beyond the confines of walls, in the landscape itself. Now, a
film by Christopher McLeod exposes the obstacles American Indians
face when they try to protect their sacred places. In the
Light of Reverence features the struggles of three
Western tribes as they stand up for religious rights that the
Constitution is supposed to guarantee all Americans.
In
California, the Wintu Tribe is fighting not only a new ski area at
Mount Shasta, but also new agers who mob the Wintus’ sacred
spring for their own rituals. Hopis in northern Arizona are
watching as their hallowed mountaintop, Woodruff Butte, is erased
by gravel mining, and the Lakota in Wyoming are competing with rock
climbers for worship time at Devils Tower (HCN, 7/7/03: Invasion of
the rock jocks). With these three stories, McLeod invites Western
thinkers to look beyond the walls of their religious traditions,
and to see that which should be sacred to all of us.
In the Light of Reverence: Protecting America’s
Sacred Lands, produced and directed by Christopher
McLeod, can be rented or purchased from Bullfrog Films at
1-800-543-3764 or www.bullfrogfilms.com.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Film sheds light on sacred spaces.
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