This dissertation by Dr. William Hawk astounds me. He lays out in great detail how he created his own "neo-traditional religion". He lays out the liturgy he invented. He writes about how he offered this group a menu of choices and then incorporated them. He observes that his invented religion was quickly adopted by the group who then stated that the beliefs were ancient.
Twentieth century Matinnecocks had a great deal to learn if they wished to recreate an authentic indigenous religion. The task of teaching them basic Great Lakes Algonkian theology fell to Wallace Pyawasit and and myself. Pyawasit's contributions were enormous.
During the summer, tribesmen of both sexes and all ages visit my camp in Michigan. While there, they learn still more about "Indian religion", at least as I understand it.
The group wanted a more formal religious bestowing of names ceremony, he invented one.
He introduced "the concept of 'Manitou' " to them that they adopted. He discarded other possibilities: "I really did not know what to do with Kauntantowit, so I did nothing at all with him". He added in anything he himself personally liked, such as eagle bone whistles.
Dr. William Hawk seemed to both know exactly what he was doing but also to be willfully ignorant. Maybe even condescending and arrogant. Maybe a fraud who mostly believed in his own self image of superiority ? He put this creation of a pan-Indian religion in anthropological context and somehow this dissertation was accepted. Yet he also writes that when he discovered some carved sticks in a drawer of a relative that they were "of course" Indian.
He can be seen in some photos that this group posts on Facebook. Current members may not know that Dr. William Hawk invented their religion.
"Chief Little Fox" took on his name before this reinvention. But all the ceremonies, the "Indian language", seasonal events, and religious trappings that he uses are now all from Hawk. Hawk took what the group already had from pretendian fraternal organizations, performances, and black Christian church life and maneuvered them into what he claimed was a true Indian religious group.
