The focus is that there will be an end

to humanity as we know it and that there are very clear markers of

when, where and how.

The problem with eschatology is that

it is a human-centered system of belief that removes any kind of

responsibility when it comes to how we treat our environment, other

forms of life and each other. As a millennial Catholic Christian, my

generation’s religious education was not to focus on the Second

Coming as a means to judge others and use up what resources we could

in our lifetime; we were taught to respect the inherent dignity of

other people, in all forms of life and to be respectful of our

surroundings.

As a Lakota, educated in Wolakota –

our belief system – I was also told the stories of our people’s

creation and how we became the dominant species on this planet.

Lakota are not dominionists, nor are we salvationists; we believe in

merit. The story of how we came to be where we are is a story of

merit. We believe that we once lived as equals with our relatives in

the animal world but over time, the Pte Oyate (Buffalo Nation) began

to think they were superior to others because of their size and

strength. A great race was held on the outer rim of the He Sapa

(Black Hills) between the two-leggeds and the four-leggeds to decide

which group would have primacy over the others.

After a long and bloody race, during

which many were trampled to death, giving the foothills of the He

Sapa a reddish ting that remains there to this day, the two-leggeds

were victorious. This was not accomplished by human cunning or skill.

It was accomplished because our relatives in the Zintkala Oyate (Bird

Nation) sat on the backs of the buffalo and flew across the finish

line, giving two-leggeds the advantage.

As we emphasize in our belief system,

we are all related and dependent upon one another. Our relatives in

the bird nation were the first to teach us that by volunteering their

skill and strategy so that other we – human beings – could not

simply have dominion over others, but be a caretaker of our

environment and our relatives in the animals nations. This is a core

belief in Wolakota, that we are no greater nor lesser than any other

being in creation.

It is an ethos that guides how we see

ourselves in the greater order of things. We are caretakers, not

conquerors; we are entrusted with responsibilities, not victors

taking spoils of war; we live so that others may live, not living off

of others. We also do not believe in end times, it is antithetical to

our faith that we should abandon the care of future generations for

the promise of immediate self-serving satisfaction or salvation. We

are empowered to leave the world a better place than we found it.

With the news of the Keystone XL

pipeline’s tact go-ahead by the Obama administration in the Dakotas

and Nebraska, the PolyMet mines’ and Enbridge pipelines’ progress in

Minnesota, it can be daunting to be faced with such dominionists

making policy that affect our tribal communities and our cultural

legacies. It is frustrating to see the shortsightedness of job

creation and corporate profit being placed before live-giving water

and the health of future generations.

But we continue in the conviction that

even when all power tells us we are wrong, inconvenient or

irrelevant, we continue to fight for what’s right. Among the Lakota,

our Oglala cousins are seen as the vanguard of all opposition toward

those that threaten our traditional ways of life. Now, with the all

the historic bands of the Oceti Sakowin (Seven Council Fires)

stepping up and the continued resistance from our Anishinaabe

relatives, it’s encouraging to see that our values are not lost, at

least not for this generation.

And while our cultures will always

change and grow with the times and reflect shifts in priorities, what

remains at our center will never be changed: that we depend on one

another for protection and that we give each other strength to endure

the challenges ahead. We will always continue to fight for our

culture and legacy, because the alternative is irresponsible to those

who are counting on us in the generations to come.