Religious+Traditions


 * RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS ~ **Created by Joyce Webb[[image:edsc4110teampa/covntseeg.jpg width="197" height="302" align="right" caption="From montesbastides.com"]]


 * Religious Beliefs - **
 * =====The Hmong culture believes closely as the Chinese do in regards to the afterlife. =====
 * From long ago it has been believed that humans and those who have passed on could meet up and talk with one another.
 * =====Since these two worlds are separate upon death, certain approaches are required to communicate with those who have passed to the afterlife. =====
 * =====Hmong believe in ancestor worship, in that there is a continued important relationship between the deceased ancestors and their living descendants. =====
 * =====Hmong believe that after death, their ancestors continue to spiritually influence their daily lives and the well-being of their descendants, who in return, offer foods and practice suitable rituals to make certain ancestors are remembered and worshipped. =====
 * =====Upon death, it is the ancestors who will welcome their descendant’s soul into their afterlife, so it is very important to remember and worship those who have passed on.[[image:edsc4110teampa/spirit.jpg width="439" height="277" align="left" caption="From library.thinkquest.org"]] =====
 * =====Socially, this practice keeps the Hmong family strong and family relations harmonious. The young depend on the old, and the old rely on the young. By helping people remember their ancestors and their roots, ancestor worship also serves to strengthen Hmong community. =====

**Shamanism ~ **

 * =====At the center of Hmong culture is the shaman, or //Txiv Neeb,// whose literal meaning is "father/master of spirits". [[image:edsc4110teampa/hmong.jpg align="right" caption="From backpacking-tips-asia.com"]] =====
 * =====According to Hmong cosmology, the human body is the host for a number of souls. =====
 * =====The isolation and separation of one or more of these souls from the body can cause disease, depression and death. =====
 * Curing rites are sometime necessary and referred to as "soul-calling rituals".
 * Whether the soul became separated from the body because it was frightened away or kidnapped by an evil force, it must return in order to restore the integrity of life.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Traditionally, most shamans are men, though some women practice shamanism.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">To be a shaman, one must be a descendant of a shaman, and it is believed that a person must experience a great illness near to death which brings one into receiving the right to begin practicing shamanism.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">After the illness or near death experience, one must be mentored for years learning rituals, chants, traditions, and the genealogy of the clan must be studied.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">A shaman may appear to be a primitive medical doctor, however, the shaman’s main role is to reproduce and re-establish the traditional beliefs, not mend physical health.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">The shaman is an important member of the community and greatly revered as a spiritual minister, dream interpreter, psychiatrist and leader who provide assistance in connecting the physical and spirit worlds.


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Traditional Animist Hmong Religion ~ media type="youtube" key="zUtTPYheoJg" height="315" width="420" align="right" **
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Animism is the belief that spirits and forces inhabit the natural universe.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">According to traditional belief, there are domestic, protective spirits as well as untamed spirits that dwell in caves, lakes, big rocks, and other natural places.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">If someone offends one of the untamed spirits, it can place a curse on the person, causing illness and even death.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Since ordinary human beings cannot see and communicate with the spirits, it is up to the shaman, with his extraordinary powers, to intercede and to act as the ambassador from one world to the other.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">During his journey to the spirit world, the shaman persuades the spirits to withdraw the curse.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Usually an apology is made and paper money is offered to compensate for the offense.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Animism encourages the Hmong to respect animals and nature and to be in harmony with their environment.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">It also serves to bind the community and clan together, as members share in religious responsibilities, partake in family rituals, and help one another in the practical tasks related to the various ritual performances.


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Hmong Religion in the US ~ **
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">It is estimated that 50% of all Hmong in the US are Christian.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Missionaries from a wide variety of Christian denominations converted many Hmong in Laos.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Even more Hmong converted to Christianity after their arrival to the United States. Baptists, Catholics, Presbyterians, members of the Church of Christ, Mormons, and Jehovah's Witnesses have all been energetic in seeking converts among the Hmong in America.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Since religion is regarded as the foundation of life among the Hmong, conversion has been among the most drastic social changes.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">In many cases, conversion to Christianity has split families, with some members taking up the new faith and some members adhering to traditional beliefs.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Marriage practices, in particular, have been affected by religious conversion since many traditional Hmong practices, such as the bridal price, arranged marriage, and the marriage of girls, are strongly discouraged by Christian churches.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">For many Hmong, the church has replaced the clan. This continues to be a struggle for many in the Hmong communities across the nation. This struggle has the ability to trickle down through the older generations to those younger and in the classrooms of America.

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 * <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Hmong Religion in the Classroom ~ **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Since the Hmong began arriving in the United States in the 1970s, thousands have attended U.S. schools, earning high school diplomas, master’s degrees, and doctorates.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">In addition, many Hmong men and women have acquired English literacy in adult ESL classes and Hmong literacy in community-based language programs.
 * <span style="font-family: 'arial','sans-serif';">Here is a link [] to <span style="font-family: 'arial','sans-serif';">a great research article by Dr. C Vang regarding Hmong American K-12 Students

WORKS CITED

Bankston III, Carl L. "Hmong Americans - History, The Hmong in Laos." //Countries and Their Cultures//. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. [].

//Center for Applied Linguistics//. Cultural Orientation Project, "The Hmong." , 28 July 2004. Web. 18 Nov. 2011. [|http://www.cal.org/co/hmong/hlit.html#6].

Lee, Txong Pao, and Mark E. Pfeifer. "Building Bridges: Teaching about the Hmong in Our Communities." //Hmong Cultural Center//. 2010. Web. 27 Nov. 2011. <http://hmongcc.org/BuildingBridgesGeneralPresentation.pdf>. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">[]

Minnesota Historical Society. "Hmong-Becoming Minnesotan."Web. 23 Nov. 2011. <http://education.mnhs.org/immigration/communities/hmong