This free presentation takes place at the Westminster West Congregational Church, 44 Church Street, Westminster West, Vermont, on Jan 23rd at 7 pm.

Black Elk's Great Vision at the age of nine was the basis for his whole life. He lived it out in three seemingly contradictory yet overlapping roles: as a traditional healer, a Catholic teacher, and a revivalist of Indigenous traditions. Black Elk passed on his vision in the famous book Black Elk Speaks and it is now becoming an important vehicle for modern people to begin re-indigenizing our relationship with the natural world. We will explore how Black Elk's understanding of Lakota spirituality philosophy can help us to see the natural world as a unified whole of which we are a small part, the different species as spiritual beings with whom we form ongoing relationships, and how the life of hope Black Elk lived in the midst of great tragedy can inform how we approach the crises of our age.

This talk is presented by Damian Costello and made possible by the Vermont Humanities Council.

The Nature Museum is co-sponsoring this event with the Living Earth Action Group, The Westminster West Congregational Church, and the Windmill Hill Pinnacle Association.