An Earthly Cosmology

Forum on Religion and Ecology Indigenous Traditions and Ecology Annotated Bibliography Abram, David. Becoming Animal: An Earthly Cosmology. New York and Canada: Vintage Books, 2011. As the climate veers toward catastrophe, the innumerable losses cascading through the biosphere make vividly evident the need for a metamorphosis in our relation to the living land. For too long we’ve ignored the wild intelligence of our bodies, taking our primary truths from technologies that hold the living world at a distance. Abram’s writing subverts this distance, drawing readers ever closer to their animal senses in order to explore, from within, the elemental kinship between the human body and the breathing Earth. The shape-shifting of ravens, the erotic nature of gravity, the eloquence of thunder, the pleasures of being edible: all have their place in this book. --------. The Spell of the Sensuous: Perception and Language in a More-than-Human World. New York: Vintage, 1997. Abram argues that “we are human only in contact, and conviviality, with what is not human” (p. ix). He supports this premise with empirical information, sensorial experience, philosophical reflection, and the theoretical discipline of phenomenology and draws on Merleau-Ponty’s philosophy of perception as reciprocal exchange in order to illuminate the sensuous nature of language. Additionally, he explores how Western civilization has lost this perception and provides examples of cultures in which the “landscape of language” has not been forgotten. The environmental crisis is central to Abram’s purpose and despite his critique of the consequences of a written culture, he maintains the importance of literacy and encourages the release of its true potency. Adams, Carol, ed. Ecofeminism and the Sacred. New York: Continuum, 1993. This text presents essays by women from diverse religious and cultural perspectives, including several by African Americans, on the positive connections between ecology, feminism, and spirituality. In the first part of the book, ecofeminists assess Christianity (Rosemary Radford Ruether, Delores S. Williams, Catherine Keller, Sallie McFague), Judaism (Judith Plaskow), Buddhism (Stephanie Kaza), and Hinduism (Lina Gupta). The second part of the book generally assesses the contributions and problematics of ecofeminist spiritualities (Karen Warren) especially with respect to specific issues such as ritual (L. Teal Willoughby), images of nature (Ellen Cronan Rose), the use of American Indian and Shamanist traditions (Andy Smith, Gloria Feman Orenstein), and race (Shamara Shantu Riley). The final part of the book addresses specific issues of ecofeminist praxis such as cross-cultural sharing (Carol Lee Sanchez), technology (Jane Caputi), the city (Rebecca Johnson), the body (Charlene Spretnak), abortion rights (Bylle Avery and Mary E. Hunt), animals (Carol J. Adams and Marjorie Procter-Smith), and education (Zoe Weil). Albanese, Catherine L. Nature Religion in America: From the Algonkian Indians to the New Age. Chicago, Ill.: University of Chicago Press, 1990. Albanese considers how the identification of nature generated different moral responses in America and examines specific perspectives (e.g., Native North Americans, Anglo- American Puritans) on nature over time (e.g., revolutionary era to the nineteenth century) in order to reveal how these perspectives permeated various cultural contexts (political philosophy, ideology of manifest destiny, natural law, etc.). Albanese also examines the Transcendental tradition and its connection to American conservation and wilderness preservation movements. Addressing the presence of ideas of nature in more contemporary contexts, Albanese also examines the natural health and healing (mesmerism, Swedenborgianism, Christian physiology, homeopathy, chiropractic) industries, as well as nature religion’s relationship to a pluralistic America (Native American syncretism, feminism, the celebration of the Goddess, etc.). Alexiades, Miguel N., ed. Mobility and Migration in Indigenous Amazonia: Contemporary Ethnoecological Perspectives. Oxford and New York: Berghahn Books, 2009. Contrary to ingrained academic and public assumptions, wherein indigenous lowland South American societies are viewed as the product of historical emplacement and spatial stasis, there is widespread evidence to suggest that migration and displacement have been the norm, and not the exception. This original and thought-provoking collection of case studies examines some of the ways in which migration, and the concomitant processes of ecological and social change, have shaped and continue to shape human-environment relations in Amazonia. Drawing on a wide range of historical time frames (from pre- conquest times to the present) and ethnographic contexts, different chapters examine the complex and important links between migration and the classification, management, and domestication of plants and landscapes, as well as the incorporation and transformation of environmental knowledge, practices, ideologies and identities. Ali, Saleem H. Mining, the Environment, and Indigenous Development Conflicts. Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona Press, 2009. This book gets to the heart of resource conflicts and environmental impact assessment by asking why indigenous communities support environmental causes in some cases of mining development but not in others. Saleem Ali examines environmental conflicts between mining companies and indigenous communities and with rare objectivity offers a comparative study of the factors leading to those conflicts. Mining, the Environment, and Indigenous Development Conflicts presents four cases from the United States and Canada: the Navajos and Hopis with Peabody Coal in Arizona; the Chippewas with the Crandon Mine proposal in Wisconsin; the Chipewyan Inuits, Déné and Cree with Cameco in Saskatchewan; and the Innu and Inuits with Inco in Labrador. These cases exemplify different historical relationships with government and industry and provide an instance of high and low levels of Native resistance in each country. Through these cases, Ali analyzes why and under what circumstances tribes agree to negotiated mining agreements on their lands, and why some negotiations are successful and others not. This book goes beyond popular perceptions of environmentalism to provide a detailed picture of how and when the concerns of industry, society, and tribal governments may converge and when they conflict. As demands for domestic energy exploration increase, it offers clear guidance for such endeavors when native lands are involved. Allan, William. The African Husbandman. Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd, 1965. Allan presents a comprehensive analysis of African agricultural systems by examining the basis of African environments, systems of land-use (e.g., hunting and agricultural use—including practices of herdspeople, pastoralists, food-gatherers, those involved in animal husbandry, etc.), and changes in development practices. Interested in the carrying capacities of various agricultural practices, Allan clearly presents the complexities of development and its economic, social, and ecological impacts. Information included in this volume applies to a variety of diverse geographical locations (Northern Rhodesia, East and West Africa, Congo Basin and Ghana, Nigeria, and the Northern Savannah). Although now somewhat dated, this book presents, and is committed to describing, a conscious awareness of diverse, indigenous knowledge and agricultural skill. Alpers, Antony. Maori Myths and Tribal Legends. Auckland, New Zealand: Longman Paul, 1964. Alpers retells Maori myths and legends as they were collected by Captain Grey in the years following his placement in New Zealand (1845). Grey collected the myths, along with their variant readings, from Maori chiefs and priests, and, although his work does contain many editorial alterations, the original manuscripts from which he worked are still preserved. Alpers provides source and background information in an appendix, while the bulk of the book contains the myths and legends themselves. He concludes with questions about the authenticity of some of the Maori themes depicted in these myths because of the Christian influence on the Maori themselves who may have been trying to impress the Governor with the thoroughness of their conversion. Alvarado, Elvia. Don’t Be Afraid Gringo: A Honduran Gringo Speaks from the Heart: The Story of Elvia Alvarado. Translated by Medea Benjamin. New York: Harper and Row, 1987. Alvarado dramatically illustrates campesino efforts to persuade the government to enforce and implement their land reform policies. She also describes the effects of United States (US) militarization of Honduras and includes an illustration of the increased internal repression that she has experienced. Translated from hours of interviews taped in the native language, this book offers an insider’s perspective on rural activism and offers a notion of resistance as an alternative to the more often reported opinions and views of politicians, academicians, and professionals. Topics include: family life, the Church, Jesus, experience of being a woman, gringos, democracy, and communism. Appendices include Honduran fact sheet, a list of major campesino organizations, tables on US economic and military aid, lists of US military establishments, and a resource guide. Amlotte, Arthur. “The Call to Remember.” Parabola 17, no. 3 (1992): 29–35. Amte, Baba. Cry, The Beloved. Chandrapur, Maharashtra, India: Maharogi Sewa

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