Black Elk- Aravind

Black Elk is a revered spiritual leader that is well known for being an instrumental part of bringing Christianity to North Americana and among the Native American tribes. Black Elk was a member of the of the Oglala Lakota tribe and was born in 1863. During his lifetime, a civil war was occurring in the United States and the Native American tribes were a central part of it. He married his first wife, Katie War Bonnet, in 1892 and also, through her, became baptized in England. With the Catholic faith, he served as a faithful catechist in England. After returning to America, he began serving as a spiritual leader, bring Christianity to North America. He also remarried in 1905 to Anna White and remained married until her death. They had three children, and Black Elk was also the second cousin of Crazy Horse, a respected war leader of the Oglala Lakota. Black Elk's suffered from tuberculosis, which may have been spread through the foreign invasion from the American colonizers. He was confined to a wheelchair and was slightly paralyzed in the hospital..

A central part of Black Elk's life as his great vision. This occurred when he was nine years old while he was suffering from a life threatening illness. During that time, he had a “Great Vision” that took him into the Lakota world where he met six grandfathers who symbolized the powers of the four directions: North, South, East, West and the earth and the sky. This vision gave him the ability to unite his people and bring religion to the whole of North America. He started these teachings n Montana, with a medicine mane called Black Road, and also wrote about the experience in his widely revered book, Black Elk Speaks. His whole life was spent trying to provide hope and determination for his tribe, aspects that made him a widely revered leader in the Native American tribes, and throughout the rest of the world. That is why I think he is considered a great theologian and spiritual leader, because of his preserving qualities and his abilities to communicate to a widespread audience.