We Survived the End of the World: Lessons from Native America on Apocalypse and Hope

by Steven Charleston

From the moment European settlers reached these shores, the American apocalypse began. But Native Americans did not vanish. Apocalypse did not fully destroy them, and it doesn't have to destroy us.

Pandemics and war, social turmoil and corrupt governments, natural disasters and environmental collapse—it's hard not to watch the signs of the times and feel afraid. But we can journey through that fear to find hope. With the warnings of a prophet and the lively voice of a storyteller, Choctaw elder and author of Ladder to the Light Steven Charleston speaks to all who sense apocalyptic dread rising around and within.

You'd be hard pressed to find an apocalypse more total than the one Native America has confronted for more than four hundred years. Yet Charleston's ancestors are a case study in the liberating and hopeful survival of a spiritual community. Charleston points to four Indigenous prophets who helped their people learn strategies for surviving catastrophe. Through gestures such as turning the culture upside down, finding a fixed place on which to stand, listening to what the earth is saying, and dancing a ghostly vision into being, these prophets helped their people survive. These ancestors' words reach across centuries to help us live through apocalypse today with courage and dignity.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Indigenous, Native American, Spirituality, Politics, Audiobook

Audible Audio

Published June 18, 2024

About the author

Steven Charleston is a citizen of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, the first of the Five Tribes from the southeastern part of the United States to be removed on the "Trail of Tears". He is a bishop in the Episcopal Church with forty years of service in the ordained ministry. He has been the director of Native American ministries for his church, the first Native Bishop of Alaska, the President and Dean of a seminary in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a seminary professor. Currently he teaches at the Saint Paul School of Theology.

Reviews

[David Crumm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inviting All of Us to Speak Words of Hope in the Midst of Global Change

Are you afraid our world is ending?

Polls show that millions of Americans are fearful of the growing effects of climate change, of the rising tide of violence in many forms, of the impact of “wars and rumors of wars” and of the threats to democracies in many parts of our world. A vast number of us living on the planet share a growing sense that an irreversible “apocalypse” is on the horizon that is likely to change the lives of our children and grandchildren.

That also means millions of us are wondering: Where is hope?

The venerable Native American theologian, teacher and author Steven Charleston reminds us that there are neighbors living among us across North America who—as resilient communities of people—already have survived an apocalypse. His new book is aptly titled, We Survived the End of the World—Lessons from Native America on Apocalypse and Hope.

Just to be clear about this book’s focus: Charleston is referring to the relentless North American genocidal campaign waged by European immigrants against this continent’s original communities. That genocide has ranged from outright murder to the theft of homelands to the long-term policies in the U.S. and Canada of kidnapping Native children and sending them to brutal (and sometimes deadly) boarding schools that attempted to wipe away all memories of their families and their cultures.

In the opening pages of what may be the most important book he has ever written, Charleston writes, “Native American culture in North America has been through the collapse of civilization and lived to tell the tale. My goal is to investigate how my ancestors were able to do that—and what their experience can teach all of us who are living in uncertain times.”

This new book shares the visionary wisdom of four real-life Native American prophets—all of whom have living legacies within Native communities—plus wisdom from the entire sweep of Hopi culture—plus, a final call to action from Charleston’s own wisdom as a prophetic elder. In less than 200 pages, Charleston has given us a crash course on this broad-base of indigenous wisdom—from a total of seven Native sources—that will be fresh news to the vast majority of American readers.

I won't try to detail all of those sources in this review, but here is one example: the Seneca spiritual leader whose name is rendered in many ways today.

He’s called Ganiodaiio in Charleston’s English rendering of his original name—or sometimes his name is spelled as Sganyodaio, Ganioda’yo, Skanatalihyo, Conudiu or, as Wikipedia has literally translated his name: Handsome Lake. In at least one other new book about Native American religious groups, his chapter is titled by none of those names but by the word “Longhouse,” because his teachings mainly are preserved by followers of the larger Iroquois Confederacy, also known as “People of the Long House.”

In a Zoom interview about his new book for a profile I'm writing, I asked Charleston to give us a very brief summary of this prophet’s life.

“Well, the first thing to understand is that he was a broken man—a person who had just about reached rock bottom in his life largely due to alcoholism. He was restored to health and strength by some mysterious spiritual encounter that released through him a powerful spiritual message that transformed his people. That is the prophetic role we are talking about here throughout all world culture and all of the living faith traditions—people who have been broken or confused or were trying to run away can find themselves transformed by a spiritual force to provide a message that breaks through to the world. This is part and parcel of the apocalyptic experience.”

Then, here's one more excerpt from my interview with him that I think captures the hopeful and helpful theme of this book.

Charleston told me, “Our Native culture is not some dusty matter for historians and anthropologists to study. The Native religious world view is an ongoing, contemporary, modern expression of human spirituality—a religious tradition like Islam or Buddhism or Hinduism. We are not a matter of history. I wrote this book to bring awareness that Native people—and our Native religious wisdom—is very contemporary and very future-focused as part of our global dialogue on spirituality.”

He continued, “I am at pains, whenever I write or speak, to tell people that these ancient parts of our indigenous cultures not only have survived, but are continuing to flourish especially as we cross into these difficult times.”

[Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book presents a way of looking at de-colonialism, reconciliation, prophetic teaching, and eschatology that centers the voices of indigenous leaders from history and calls for a rejection of Individualism.

His argument is structured on the teachings of four indigenous prophets:

1 - Ganiodaiio: Authentic acknowledgement, confession, and repentance of our complicity in the suffering and brokenness around us.

2 - Tenskwatawa: A focus on community and relational identity, unity in diversity.

3 - Smohalla: Recognition that the rest of creation is an active and participatory part of our community; not just a stage, setting, or prop for our existence.

4 - Wovoka: Living in to a communal identity requires taking the risk of setting aside preconceptions and expectations of what reconciliation looks like and being open to the unexpected.

That last point I believe is especially important for westerners and white people who expect reconciliation to be the extremes of either direct and aggressive retaliation for all the past exploitation and oppression, or totally painless and peaceful forgiveness and utopian family of humanity style community. Charleston directly warns that reconciliation is not easy or safe. It requires vulnerability and sacrifice and will not always go well.

Overall this was a fantastic book, and I am glad I picked it up at my local library.

[Robyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

SWOCCLibrary | Doesn't support its own thesis | Read for the Oregon CASA Network Book Club. This didn't work for me. The history aspects were fascinating and well-presented, I'm glad to get better knowledge of individual leaders and events, but the message of survival I am apparently meant to walk away with was both garbled and not one I can get on-board with. In one section Charleston seems to advocate for the barest of survival in the sense only of subsistence, that the Nation turned from a "we" culture to a "me" culture, and incorporated the Christian values of sin, penance, confession, hell, eternal torment, etc, into a faith structure that had not previously included them. This is lauded as a win, though it sounds awful, and is immediately followed by the suggestion that now our entire society needs to go back from a "me" culture to a "we" culture, indicating that the message is to betray the values that you know are right, just to keep your line intact, and later,if there's enough of you left, you can attempt to reverse it. Next we moved to a section in which the Nations combined to build a community and a site of strength, which was quickly destroyed and the people scattered. The book continued in this vein, and I was both very uncomfortable with the Christian bent and didn't feel that it was presenting a type of survival that I consider hopeful.

[Atlas DeBorde · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book popped out at me at one of my local bookstores. I don’t often buy books because the library is an amazing resource, but sadly they did not have this book in their catalog. Honestly, I’m glad they didn’t. I would much rather own this book. It offered a wealth of wisdom and hope between its pages.

This book highlights 4 Native American prophets as well as the prophecy of the Hopi People. As we watch this genocide unfold in Palestine, we are being forced to look at the history of genocide in our own country. The First Nations People have been through more than one apocalypse, but they never backed down. They continued to hold onto their sacred Truths and Knowledge.

At this time in history we are faced with apocalypse after apocalypse. We are killing the Earth. We are killing each other. We are killing any hope of salvation. But we don’t have to. We can shape the current apocalypse into a better future. We can choose to perish, or we can choose to change. We are all prophets during this critical time in history. We must wake up and lean into Truth if we are to have any hope of survival.

[Sam Wescott · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, my first thought when I read this book’s title and subtitle was “oh, wow. That is incredibly generous.” I generally feel very honored when indigenous authors share works about what has every right to be closed practice and protected history.

But I will say that if I had seen that the genre tags at the library were “new age” and “spirituality” instead of “history” or “politics”, I probably wouldn’t have picked it up. I’m personally not swayed by calls to revival and I’m still not convinced that impending climate and political disaster can be mitigated by spiritual reform.

But, despite this authors insistent claims that this book wasn’t a history, it was at least a cohesive series of historical moments of resistance that were pretty inspiring. I’m a little disappointed that the only vision for community building and mutual care was consistently portrayed as the sole jurisdiction of spirituality and religion, but I appreciated the presentation of times where it filled that purpose in the past. The section on the ghost dance was particularly moving and I will always appreciate being invited to learn from creative works about reconciliation, persistence, and progress.

[Cheyenne · Rating 1 out of 5]

The heavy Christian tones in this book were unexpected. This book was sadly from a very colonized perspective. In general, I would never recommend this book. It is horrible.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent read. Highly recommend to those wondering what can I do to make a difference in our world today.

[Melinda Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible work reminding us to look to what we already know. Through the lens of four Indigenous prophets in North America, the author reminds us that we have all lived through apocalypse, one way or another. Indigenous communities have survived and all of us will, if we remember that we are in relationship with Creator and creation. Far too often Western Christian thinking has only focused on a relationship with Creator and creation has been treated as dead instead of a living partner. I really appreciated the unpacking of the terms revelation and apocalypse at the beginning of the book, and the accessibility for non-Native readers such as myself to enter in understanding how the colonized mindset affects everyone. It is a thoughtful book, reminding us it's not too late to change our ways, especially for Mother Earth and all our sakes.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book super interesting, but found that the first 80% was better than the end. The practical application part didn't really land for me—not because he said anything that I disagreed with, but just because everything else he wrote was more interesting than that section.

[Antoinette Van Beck · Rating 5 out of 5]

a super quick read, and a beautiful one at that. this had some sobering history of the injustices wrought on indigenous peoples throughout the colonial endeavor that established the united states, but focused primarily on the spiritual leaders and prophets of four incredibly tumultuous and apocalyptic times.

i loved the framing of apocalypse as both a ongoing process and a literal event (as has come to be the more commonly associated idea). the fact that every single person will experience an apocalypse-- that life-altering event that changes you fundamentally-- is both terrifying and comforting, whether that moment is collective or individual (or a mix of both).

the last section brought forward the need for racial reconciliation and ecological stewardship in the face of impending climate disaster: the need to face up to the realities of our shared histories and the pain that is at the core of society's structure today (e.g. colonialism, capitalism, empire, etc.) in order to establish something new. imagining a better future for all, co-created in the wake of violence and turmoil, and conscious of the harm inherent to extremism (in whichever direction, individual or community). really well-considered throughout with many poignantly stated perspectives to ponder.

[Jifu · Rating 5 out of 5]

This title admittedly caught my eye precisely because it was mid-November of 2024 and I am a US citizen. So I purchased it from my local bookstore, and found that at least for this particular moment in time, I found its message of hope to be incredibly comforting, and frankly surprisingly empowering.

[Jacqueline · Rating 4 out of 5]

I adore Steven Charleston and am working my way through all his books. As a Native American elder and a retired Episcopal bishop he has a unique perspective to share and he does that with much compassion and wisdom. I am so glad that, in this book, he insists as ever on confronting life just as it is and yet leaves the reader with a call to action and hope for the future. What could be more important in times like these!?

[Jan Bloxham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slightly diffuse, but contains some strong passages. Here’s the best:

“Contemporary American society is the reverse of traditional native American culture. Whereas native communities value the group, the dominant society values the individual. In fact, it considers rugged individualism to be a virtue. It looks up to the self-made success story. It honours the person who can acquire more than anyone else. It likes heroes who can go it alone and role models who make their own rules. It disparages collective action as a herd mentality and prefers individuals with the right to do as they choose.

For millions of people, individuality has evolved into individualism. A cult of personality in which they are the personality.

The consequences of this individualistic society should be apparent as we survey the apocalyptic situation in which we find ourselves. Many of our most persistent problems have to do with greed, with the desire of some individuals to have more than others. Arrogance fuels many of our deepest social issues. A sense of entitlement and privilege haunts us as we try to create a cohesive society.

We struggle to make any concerted effort to cope with environmental change because any significant response would impact our individual lifestyles. It would require sacrifice, and most of us would prefer for someone else to make that sacrifice. We are, therefore, the ultimate ME society.

Even in the face of a common apocalyptic danger, we will not come together.
Our attachment to individualism has blunted our ability to confront racism, immigration, education reform, medical care, and even the ability to vote. In other words, when called on to face the apocalyptic challenges before us, we fail to make a unified response. Instead, we fragment into even smaller units of privilege.

[We have to] make an adjustment to the culture. We will have to challenge some of the bedrock assumptions of our society and confront individualism head-on. When we do, we must be prepared for an outpouring of denial, objections, threats, and conflict.

To question individualism is to question an addiction of the dominant society: the mythic ground on which so much of our colonial history is centred.”

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary: For a culture facing apocalyptic times, Charleston proposes we might learn from the prophets of the Native peoples of North America, who brought messages to help their own people face the apocalypse of the colonists and their successors.

Anyone attuned to what is happening in our world may easily be inclined to believe that we are living in apocalyptic times–a rapidly warming world with extreme weather, extensive fires, droughts, and floods, an endless series of mass shootings, regional wars that threaten to engulf the world, divisive and dysfunctional politics and failing states. We can try to ignore what is around us, whether in some form of narcotized state, or sheer busyness, or in an “eat, drink, and be merry” hedonism. If we believe that human beings are meant for better than these responses, we face the challenge of how then are we to live in these times, sustaining both our humanity and our hope.

Steven Charleston proposes that we are not the first peoples to confront such times. In this book he reminds readers that the indigenous peoples of North America faced a similar apocalypse when Europeans came to “Turtle Island,” spread over its length and breadth, “discovered” it, and claimed it for their own. While defeated, displaced, and killed in large numbers, these indigenous people did not disappear. Charleston argues that a critical factor in their survival were the prophets whose visions offered them strategies that sustained them. He considers four prophets in particular.

Ganiodaiio of the Seneca proposed flipping the communal culture of his people upside down. Such a culture contributed to a malaise of dysfunctional behaviors. He advocated a kind of personal responsibility of the individual to the tribe’s survival that built cohesion. Likewise, Charleston proposes that we may need to flip the other way, from our toxic individualism to a communal focus that both values liberty and the common good.

Tenskwatawa of the Shawnee created a fixed place for his people to stand, Prophetstown. First in Greenville, and later in northwest Indiana, he gathered people from many tribes to live alongside each other as a kind of “City on a Hill.” Charleston believes we need to form such communities today, physical, and in his case, virtual that offer a focus of purpose and hope for diverse peoples. Just as Prophetstown went where Tenskwatawa went, Charleston proposed we can carry this city within us.

Smohalla of the Wanapams urged listening to what the earth says. He proposed that we live within a covenant triad of the Creator, the human community, and the earth, also a living entity. Smohalla points us to the truth that the ultimate answer to our environmental crisis is not science but love for the living world that sustains us as well as for each other and the Creator.

Wovoka of the Paiute taught the Ghost Dance, a circle dance without drums but only a shared chant. It was a dance that fostered hope of a better day that ended in the tragedy of Wounded Knee in which Ghost Shirts were no protection from bullets. Paradoxically, it was a dance that unified people in hope and challenged others with the long, hard work of reconciliation. Indigenous people have never ceased dancing the Dance,

Finally, he turns to the narratives of the Hopi people of the Southwest. They tell a story of a single humanity, separated by migrations, and also there is the hope of a reconciliation, not only with these people but with the Mother who sustains us.

On one hand, the question may be asked, were these visions for the indigenous peoples or for all? Certainly the focus is on indigenous peoples against the apocalypse of colonization. Yet there are the intimations of a wider humanity. It is on the basis of this that Charleston sees a word for the wider humanity facing a global humanity.

It is striking to me as a white North American that we have often discounted the teachings of those we have oppressed, whether it is a vision of loving not only the Creator but the Creation, a living world that sustains us or the Beloved Community and understanding of suffering that comes through the Black church. What an interesting irony that there might be critical messages from these peoples that might mean life for all who now call “Turtle Island” our home?

Charleston holds out the hope that if enough of us heed, we might avert apocalypse. But it seems that the messages of the prophets he cites have to do with how we might live through apocalypse. That also seems to be the focus of the apocalyptic prophets of Christianity who encourage people to suffer for righteousness without losing heart or faith or communal cohersion, and to hope in a new creation. They don’t promise that we will save the earth or avert apocalypse but rather participate with the Creator in its renewal. So while I differ at this one point from Charleston, it seems that to welcome and listen to the lessons of the indigenous prophets not only offers wisdom for our present time but may also be a first small step of coming in a good way in the work of reconciliation and coming together as a common humanity to meet the existential challenges of our time.

________________________________

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewer Program.

[Rama Rao · Rating 1 out of 5]

Finding hope among indigenous people

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof … .” For Native-American religion this was a hard truth because it was never considered as a religion. This faith system features a creator as well as other deities: Place, land, spirit world, and nature are important, and burial grounds are treated as sacred. Ceremony and rituals played an essential role in Native American culture and spirituality was an integral part of their being. They believed in natural forces that controlled their lives, in essence physics also proposes four physical forces, and the laws of physics in creating the physical reality. But the European invaders never respected their faith and chose to enforce Christian education by force and violence.

In this book, the author uses Biblical concepts such as apocalypse and hope to find solutions from the pain and suffering of his ancestors. Apocalypticism cultivated a sense of meaning and encouragement through dire circumstances. It sought to make sense of suffering, and it predicted an end to suffering. In doing so, it gave people hope. Above all, apocalyptic thinking bonded people together in uncertain and challenging times. They turned to their prophets. The author has done the same thing in this book. In trying to discern how and why his ancestors lived through death and destructions at the hands of the invaders of their land, he rediscovers the prophets among his ancestors. He finds the apocalyptic revelation to uncover the mystery and miracle of their survival. It is though hope and healing, he observes that all people must unite for love, peace, and harmony. Well, this message is not new and never worked in the past and why should it now? The greatest enemy of human beings are the established religions, especially Islam and Christianity. Historically they used force and coercion to convert people of other faiths. There were numerous religious wars to establish their faith system, in the process, people suffered, and this is no different from the sufferings of native Americans. The use of Biblical theology to find revelations in his ancestors is confounding.

[Rochelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

As we've breached the 1.5C threshold of global warming, and as Americans are now facing the reality of climate change in our own backyards (through the death, destruction, and displacement from Hurricane Helene in North Carolina and the wildfires in Los Angeles, for example), this is an increasingly urgent message on transformation, community, and resilience.

It's interesting, how some of the lessons from indigenous elders overlap with Buddhism, like how war on the outside is something we can find in ourselves. And the antidote to war can also be found in ourselves. The key is us. We, the humans, the collective, all beings, including and especially Mother Earth.

I learned that vision quests, which can be found in so many different indigenous cultures, are spiritual journeys that offer transformation and guidance, and that these vision quests are available to everyone, not just to a select few holy people. I appreciate how this concept, this accessibility, gives me agency, as someone who is imperfect (AKA not holy, important, or powerful in any traditional sense), when it can be so easy to slip into resignation. And resignation, the author argues, is like a narcotic, putting us in an inactive stupor.

It's interesting, in the same way how I draw comparisons to Buddhism, that the author draws comparisons to Christianity (which makes sense as he's a bishop in the Episcopal Church). He uses a lot of Christian terminology (e.g. calling Prophetstown a "New Jerusalem"), perhaps to build a bridge between indigenous teachings and the Christian majority in America, so we can all understand the context of history and realize our connectedness. I personally didn't click with the use of this kind of terminology, but I also acknowledge this is how the author processed his ancestors' knowledge in a way that's authentic to him.

I listened to the audiobook and definitely didn't catch everything this first read-through. This will likely be something I'd like to revisit one day (perhaps in print, if my library picks up a physical copy). Actually, I probably should re-read it sometime, as I'm going through my own personal apocalypse right now.

[Tessa {bleeds glitter}]

While the histories about the four Native American prophets is obviously interesting and I agree with the overall message that we need to return to community based values and protect our wonderful planet, the rest simply isn't for me. I'm neither a religious nor a spiritual person and I, quite frankly, don't see much good in either. I understand that this is also a cultural difference and that spiritualism is still better than the church based religions in the cultural West (which has done and is still doing SO much damage) and while I accept that that's an important part of life and a source of strength for many people, I still can't say I can see it as positive or even something I need to resort to in my own life, so the end didn't really sit right with me. What also confused me a little is that.. the world always ended after what the prophets said would keep them safe. So nothing the prophets said actually did anything to protect anyone from the apocalypse, it brought people together and gave them hope and then the apocalypse happened and people still survived, either with the new hope of another prophet or simply because of, well, nothing those prophets actually said or did. Simply because that's what humans do, we survive, we rebuild, we do it all again. Native Americans surely are a vital source on how to keep holding onto hope and community and your beliefs when seemingly the whole world is out to exterminate you, I'm just not quite certain the moments picked were the right ones to prove that.

[Nrosenberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was extremely thought provoking and engaging! To be honest, it was a bit more academic than I expected - it seemed like something I would have read in one of my Religious Studies courses or even in a History course. This is not a bad thing, just be aware going into it.

Charleston carefully weaves the experiences and teachings of four Native American prophets and expertly ties them into a wider Hopi theology. This is incredibly well done and fantastically researched. Charleston makes his arguments well.

I came out at the end feeling rejuvenated and ready to take the work ahead. There is a sense of urgency, as Charleston argues, but waking up and engaging with others can be done NOW. We can break bread with those we disagree with.

Now, of course, how do I break bread with those MAGA types that may be nice on the surface but wish me ill (either because of my religion, sexual identity, or political beliefs). I think this is where Charleston does fall a bit short. We can engage as much as we want, but there needs to be reciprocal engagement. But, to be fair, Charleston readily acknowledges that truth and reconciliation are not easy. I just think there could have been more work done here.

At the end of the day, I learned a lot and feel refreshed. We have hope, faith, and love. That’s the first step to a better world - literally! At the heart of the apocalypse of our current times is the climate crisis. We must live each other and the world equally to reach our final destination.

[Dave Holt · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I invite you to join me in becoming a prophet… We can all become prophets of our own time. We are all needed." Steven Charleston is an Episcopal Bishop, citizen of the Choctaw Nation, who teaches you'd be hard pressed to find an apocalypse more total than the one Native America confronted for more than four hundred years. How did Indigenous communities achieve the miracle of their own survival and live to tell the tale?
Charleston points to four Indigenous prophets who helped their people learn strategies for surviving catastrophe … looks, too, at the Hopi people of the American Southwest, “The Peaceful Ones” … “struggling to maintain the integrity of their own history and spirituality,” possessors of a sacred tablet, “but it is broken … a piece deliberately broken … given to the white race to carry,” until the day when the chance for reconciliation would come. (160) His message is, these ancestors' words reach across centuries to help us live through apocalypse today.
Apocalyptic times give rise to apocalyptic visions, and the bearers of those visions are the everyday people who are willing to take the risk of sharing them. … We are not miracle workers or moral judges … we are human beings living in extraordinary times … communities seeking a spiritual purpose to their lives,“ (199). from the new 2023 book, We Survived the End of the World: Lessons from Native America on Apocalypse and Hope.

[Mathieu · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this book, Charleston describes four of the prophets from Native American nations. He describes how they came to be and how they influenced Native American history. In so doing, the reader is also exposed to the course of history in North America from the perspective of the Indigenous peoples, which is different from the history most white people have been taught.

I find the descriptions of these prophets to have similarities to those of the prophets used by Christian religions. How could they not be, since Indigenous cultures have been heavily influenced by Christian missionaries for many generations? For example, three of the prophets described died for a time before returning from the spirit world.

However one interprets the spiritual side of these Indigenous cultures, the underlying message seems similar: all peoples should co-exist, people are part of and dependent upon Nature. The lessons of the Hopi, of retreating from conflict and living within the resources available from Nature remain a spiritual and moral guide for today. Society today would be so much better off without those who seek to profit from extracting all they can from Nature. Providing Nature a place in all discussions and decisions would get people a lot farther than not.

[Princesita De cristal]

" The mystical theme of the space age is this: the world as we know it is coming to an end. The world as the center of the universe, the world divided from the heavens, the world bound by horizons in which love is reserved for members of the in-group: that is the world that is passing away. Apocalypse does not point to a fiery Armageddon but to the fact that our ignorance and our complacency are coming to an end. —Joseph Campbell"

" The death of community is one of the great apocalyptic fears of our time. Most of us still know deep inside that we cannot survive without community, but we cannot seem to create it. Like the Native people living in the years before the War of 1812, we know that united we stand, divided we fall. But how do we become united? How do we learn again to care for one another, to work with one another, to trust one another? "

" What was it that could inspire not just one man but a whole nation to undertake such a noble but tragic flight to freedom? What gave them the courage and dignity to defy overwhelming odds and remain true to their principles even in the midst of an apocalypse? The answer may seem strange, but it is accurate: they were following a dream"

[Ghost · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars

Honestly a really good almost introduction book to Native American history and the lessons we can learn from the prophets of some tribes. Although this is not a history lesson or book it does help fill in gaps that many may not know. I liked how Charleston wrote in such a digestible way that allowed the reader to ponder what we can learn from Native American prophets in order to survive in this impending apocalypse that we face. I learned that we should change from a “me” to “we” society, that we need a fixed place like a city on a hill in order to have a solid foundation to build on together, that we need the acknowledge the earth as an alive being and care for her, and lastly that all sides need to speak the truth and reconcile in order for all to be well.

Overall I learned a lot about what we can do as a society in order to face the apocalypse slowly coming for us, but at times it was a little heavy handed and often repeated the questions of what can we do and learn from this even if we knew that was what was going to be discussed from the introduction chapter.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lucid and simple exposition of Native American spiritual traditions and history. The word Apocalypse is used here not in the sense of The End of Days as in the Biblical Book of Revelation, but in the sense of crises a people or individual might experience. As he is Choctaw himself, the author emphasizes from a Native American perspective the various apocalypses Native Americans have experienced, mostly from the evil results of "Manifest Destiny." Through the teachings of four Native American prophets and from the Hopi religion, the author elucidates how we can all live in harmony with each other and with the Earth of which we should be stewards, not exploiters.
I thank the publisher for sending me an ARC.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was hard to read for several reasons, but they are important ones.

Charleston reviews the horrors of the American apocalypse, I call it Holocaust, of the Indigenous peoples of this country. The unspeakable ways in which “Christians” steamrolled over these defenseless people, and how they nevertheless survived.

And he describes how these truly first Americans were in community with Mother Earth, respecting her gifts, sharing them with others, and not exploiting the resources of earth as most people feel free to do.

Now Mother Earth is at another crisis stage, like the ice age, at the point of total collapse, due to limited respect for nature, greed, and lack of community, faith and love.

Incredibly sad.

[R.W. Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a timely book, with an important message. I wish it was treated as such. Then again, I wish what Steven Charleston envisions as the hope for weathering this current apocalypse, finding reconciliation through honest acknowledgement seemed more plausible.
Like the prophets in this book, one gets the feeling that things are going to end badly, that in spite of our best efforts, greed will win the day, and suffering will continue, but as Charleston points out, we don't have to participate, we can do better, but the only way it works is if a lot of us get on the same page. It's an inspiring message that has spurned me to action, and I hope it will catch on.

As Steven Charleston points out, you are a prophet because you're awake. Maybe this time can be different.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid 4/5 stars for our latest church book group selection. Steven Charleston is an indigenous author and a retired Episcopal bishop and academic. He highlights four prophet figures from various native tribes and thoughtfully expounds on what we can learn about how their prophetic visions and actions saw their people through the American Apocalypse (the myriad ways and times that the US government and settlers’ attempted to wipe out native cultures). This is a good balance of historical context and theological reflection while avoiding cliched appropriations of the beliefs of these prophets and their cultures. Definitely a good read if you’re seeking some hope in what seems like a pretty hopeless time.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first 3/4 of this book is excellent -- a history of Native Americans and how they miraculously had "prophets" emerge while they were being conquered who guided their people to something better than total annihilation (although the outcome was still pretty grim, honestly).

The last part of the book was a lame "move away from individualism!" new age hippie message which wasn't particularly supported by the rest of the book, by history, or by human nature. The story of Native Americans is maybe a story of how to survive, but not particularly a story of how to thrive. To date, the only societies who have really done that in modern times are small pockets of Western Europe and a Asian nations who incorporated their techniques (and expanded and in some cases surpassed them).

[LEnglish · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book’s spiritual ideology is very foreign to my Americanized thinking. With complete respect, I was a bit confused about “Spider-Grandmother” and The Ant People, are they actual beliefs of native biology, history, metaphors, or riddles?

I loved the heart behind the book, the concepts of forgiveness, peace, unity, and love for our planet was great! I also like seeing the native’s perspective that views the earth as “living” and ultimately bringing unity to all creation.

I was broken-hearted to review all the strategies that the natives suffered due to the european settlers, the natives deserve more respect now and throughout history! Their perspective of history and earth should be considered and taught across our country.

So much wisdom! Truly thought-provoking!

[Trace C · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved this book, the messages that Charleston conveys are both deeply touching due to their historical significance and the horrors that the native american people had the go through, and very relevant to today, and our society. I love how the book isn't preachy and yet touches upon religion in a positive light, and how it has helped people throughout history and the good messages it teaches. I also enjoy how it brings to light native american culture and how they adapted to a very harsh and unkind world by looking at the good they can do for each other and for themselves. Overall I would rate this book a 4 out of 5 because of the messages if teaches although at times the writing is a little bit clunky.

[Mark Bourdon · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is much to learn and think about with this book. Charleston summarizes the teachings of four visionary men and the Hopi, who have lived through apocalyptic times. Their journey is definitely worth reading and understanding: genocide, pandemics, concentration camps, re-education centers, death marches, religious persecution, environmental destruction, language loss, imprisonment, political oppression, sanctioned murder, kidnapping, slavery, sexual abuse, and endemic racism; which continues today. And yet, sovereign nations continue. I found hope and strength for our nation as I read this book. Now, I have to read it again.