Deceptive Dakota Protesters at Coldwater Spring

by Thomas Dahlheimer

In the National Park Service's " Sacred Site and Traditional Cultural Property Analysis" Coldwater Spring report, there is a presentation of a couple of statements by Gary Cavender, a Dakota elder:

"There are seven groups of Dakota [Mdewakanton, Wahpekute, Wahpeton, Sisseton, Yankton, Yanktonai, and Teton]. There are seven stars in the constellation of Orion. We are the spirit beings from the constellation of Orion and those seven stars. This whole area [Mdote] is important to us because this is where we first came as spirit beings - to the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers. We spread out from there becoming human beings as we spread out from there."

"The water from Coldwater Spring comes out from underneath the land and some of the spirit beings that arrived went into the water and they appeared on earth here and so became Dakotahs."

When addressing the subject of Dakota creation storie[s], Wilhelm K. Meya, one of the most active anthropologists working with the Lakota today, wrote: "The Mdewakanton are considered in the oral tradition, one of the most ancient divisions of the Sioux Nation or Ocetisakowin 'Seven Council Fires'. The sacred lake (Mille Lacs) figures prominently in Lakota/Dakota creation stories. The lake is considered sacred because the Dakota people emerged from it as human beings into this world." ref.(1.)... ref. (2.)

The National Park Service report also states that: "Gary Cavender also talks about Coldwater Spring and the Dakota origin tradition. This account is not related in the ethnography report, but it is very important. Cavender testified that, 'The Spring is the site of our creation myth (or 'Garden of Eden') and the beginning of Indian existence on Earth.' He does not explain what this means. Since Mdote (the confluence) is recognized as the place at which the Dakota came to Earth, Cavender could be including the spring in a broad area around the confluence that would be within the bounds of their 'Garden of Eden'." ref.

Are there two Dakota creation myths in the Mdote area, or one Dakota creation myth in the Mdote area? Gary Cavender seems to be contradicting himself. And he CONVENIENTLY does not mention the Dakota people's Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) creation myth (or "Garden of Eden"). If fact, he testified that the Spring is THE site of OUR (the Dakota's) creation myth...and did so, when he (I believe) knows (it's common knowledge amongst the Dakota people) that the Dakota people also believe that there is a Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation myth (or "Garden of Eden"). ref. In addition, there is also a Dakota Black Hills creation myth: "According to tribal history, the Oceti Sakowin (the Sioux or Dakota) came from the Black Hills, literally emerging from the Earth at a place called Wind Cave. The Oceti Sakowin consider the entire Black Hills region sacred and call it Paha Sapa, 'the heart of everything that is.'" Therefore, Wind Cave is where there is another Dakota creation myth (or "Garden of Eden").

What statement about the Coldwater Spring site makes the site appear to be more important to the Dakota people? The Spring is THE site of the Dakota creation myth? Or, the Mdote area is the site of ONE of the Dakota's creation myths, another Dakota creation myth site is at Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake), and there is even one more Dakota creation myth at Wind Cave in the Black Hills?

And which one of the following two statements about the Coldwater Spring site makes the site appear to be more important to the Dakota people? (1.) The Coldwater Spring site is THE Dakota's "Garden of Eden"? (2.) The Coldwater Spring site is ONE of three Dakota "Garden of Eden" sites, another Dakota "Garden of Eden" site is at Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake), and the third Dakota "Garden of Eden" site is at Wind Cave in the Black Hills?

Covering up the truth about the Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation myth hurts the work of, both, Dakota activists and Dakota rights activists who are working to rectify injustices being committed against the Dakota in the Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) area. ref.(1.)... ref.(2.)... ref.(3.)

After reading Gary Cavender's statements and the National Park Service's report, I became aware that people who do not know about the Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation myth would wrongly believe that there is only one Dakota creation myth and that it is in the Mdote area. I am trying to rectify this injustice. There is a group of people (mostly made up of Dakota activists) trying to discredit me and my Dakota rights activist work in the Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) area... and doing so, because of this initiative of mine.

Article: History of the Dakota in their Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral homeland

On a Mille Lacs Kathio State Park interpretive sign, Leonard E. Wabasha is quoted as saying: "My people are the Mdewakanton Oyate. Mdewakanton means the People of Spirit Lake. Today that lake is known as Mille Lacs. This landscape is sacred to the Mdewakanton Oyate because one Otokaheys Woyakapi (creation story) says we were created here. It is especially pleasing for me to come here and walk these trails, because about 1718 the first Chief Wapahasa was born here, at the headwaters of the Spirit River. I am the eighth in this line of hereditary chiefs." ref.

When addressing the subject of Lakota/Dakota creation stories, Wilhelm K. Meya, one of the most active anthropologists working with the Lakota today, wrote: "The Mdewakanton are considered in the oral tradition, one of the most ancient divisions of the Sioux Nation or Ocetisakowin 'Seven Council Fires'. The sacred lake (Mille Lacs) figures prominently in Lakota/Dakota creation stories. The lake is considered sacred because the Dakota people emerged from it as human beings into this world." ref.

The following interpretation of the name Mdewakanton, an interpretation that incorporates the Dakota's creation story associated with Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake), is displayed on the Prairie Island Mdewakanton Dakota Community website. "The Mdewakanton, 'those who were born of the waters,'..." ref.

On the Prairie Island Mdewakanton Dakota Community website there are the words: "For many hundreds of years we have inhabited this area of Minnesota. The Prairie Island people are part of a larger group called the Dwellers of the Spirit Lake (Mille Lacs Lake), in our language the Mde wakan ed otunwahe. Over the years this name has been shortened to Mdewakantonwan or Mdewakanton (M'DAY-wah-kahn-tahn)." The Mdewakanton "Dwellers of the Spirit Lake" (Mille Lacs Lake) are the people who were (according to one Dakota creation story) "born of the waters" of Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake).

Comments by Dakota people:

Jeff wrote:

I grew up by the Rum River and never knew it's significance as a kid. I have since become re-connected with my deceased Dakota fathers' side of the family. I have learned a lot about what was important to our ancestors. The Mille Lacs area creation story is paramount to our ancestral identity as is the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers story. They are all wakan. The name "Rum" should definitely be dropped and changed to something more appropriate. Wakan or Spirit River, for instance.

Seems to me that claiming any ancestral rights to land in the vicinity of the Twin Cities metropolitan area spells M-O-N-E-Y. This may be why the individuals you mention seem to be disregarding the Dakota creation story of Mille Lacs Lake. Or it may be to avoid confusing wasicu who do not understand these things but with the intent of gaining rights to lands near the Twin Cities in lieu of rights to the Wakan River.

Jeff's Uncle wrote:

In all my travels amongst the people I personally have never heard it said that Mendota was credited with being the 'Center' of Dakota origins. Mendota was given this particular spelling and pronunciation by the American Fur Company who established a fur trading post there and the word itself comes from the Dakota word 'mdote' meaning where 'one river joins another or meets another' (the St Peters River now called the Minnesota R., and the Miss. R.) Ft. Snelling was established by the American gov't near that location to claim, protect, and establish their influence in the region. The natives of Mendota are called Mdewakantons for a reason. When working amongst my Lakotah brothers even they referred to their place of origins as 'Spirit Lake' (Mde Wakan or Mille Lacs Lake). More can be said of the above issue but will let this suffice for now.

In an Isanti County News article about a 2008 Wakan Wakpa (Rum River) Canoe Expedition that provided a group of inner-city Dakota boys from Minneapolis and St. Paul an opportunity to paddle the natural artery of their ancestors LeMoine LaPointe, director of the Healthy Nations Program at the Minneapolis American Indian Center, is quoted: (1.) "Their 165-mile paddle from Mille Lacs Lake to Minneapolis commemorated many important aspects of Dakota history and culture..." (2.)"The Rum, known for centuries as Wakan Wakpa (Holy River), is an important spiritual and cultural artery to the Dakota who, until 1745, lived at Mille Lacs (Mde Wakan) and considered it the center of their world." Dakota creation stories include considering the place of origin as "the center of the world".

During the Coldwater Spring/Bureau of Mines open house on February 23, 2009, Sheldon Wolfchild, who was representing the Lower Sioux Mdewakanton Community, (one of four federally recognized Minnesota Mdewakanton Dakota Communities), exaggerated the importance of the Mdote/Bdote area by demeaning the importance that the Dakota place on their Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral homeland. And did so, by denying that there is a Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation story.

And the Lower Sioux Mdewakanton Community has NOT even given its support for the effort to change the profane name of the "Rum River". This river, Wakan Wakpa, is a sacred part of the Mdewakanton Dakota's Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral homeland and it is being radically desecrated. It is a disgrace and scandal that the Lower Sioux Community has not given its support for the effort to change this river's profane name. The demeaning of the importance that the Dakota people place on their sacred Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral homeland could be the reason, or one reason, why the other three Minnesota Mdewakanton Dakota Communities, as well as many other Dakota communities/tribes (located in other states), did not have representatives at the February 23, 2009 meeting, giving their communities' support behind the Dakota activists who are in the forefront of the movement to try to influence the National Park Service officials, and other federal agency officials, to give Coldwater Spring back to the Dakota people.

The Dakota activists on the forefront of this movement are betraying their own (Dakota) people, by radically demeaning the importance that the Dakota people place on thier sacred Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral homeland.

A statement in the National Park Service's report reads: "Mdote. The physical confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi rivers, which figures in Dakota history as a place of origin and the center of the earth." And in a Lower Sioux Community statement delivered to National Park Service officials there are the words: "The Coldwater Spring is a sacred spring for the Dakota people the spring is the dwelling place of the underwater spirit 'Uuktehi' and encompasses part of the center of the earth for the Dakota people." ref. I doubt if very many Dakota [now-a-days] believe that Coldwater Spring encompasses part of the center of the earth for the Dakota people.

What is the meaning of the term "the center of the earth" to the Dakota people? It does not mean the core of the earth. Jim Anderson, the co-cultural chair and historian for the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community, said that Mdote was literally at the center of Turtle Island, the Native term for North America, the Earth's northern hemisphere. Or, in other words, "the center of the earth" means the center of the Dakota's world. When looking at a globe, Minnesota appears to be at or near the center of Turtle Island. The term "the center of the earth" (in part) means the geographic center of the Dakota's world. The term also means the spiritual center of their world. Therefore, the term means that the place that is being called "the center of the earth" is the Dakota's most important (sacred) place in their world.

Just because a Dakota spiritual leader at some time in the distant past said that a particular place is "the center of the earth", his statement does not mean that all of the Dakota, at that time, believed what he said. And even if they did, it does not mean that the place would forever be the center of the Dakota's world, or their most sacred place.

Some Dakota activists who are trying to protect the sacred Coldwater Spring site are being deceptive when they say that the Modte area is the Dakota's most sacred place, because, many years ago, a Dakota spiritual leader said that Mdote was the "center of the earth".

The truth is, where is more than one place that the Dakota people have concidered to be "the center of the earth" or "the center of their world" The Dakota believe that Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) is [a] place of orgin and it was once the center of their world. And [now-a-days] many Sioux (or Dakota) believe that the Black Hills are the center of the earth/world, or the Dakota's most sacred place. "For the Sioux the Black Hills, Paha Sapa, are the center of the world, the place of the gods, where the warriors would go to wait for visions and to speak to the Great Spirit." ref. "While the whites found gold, the Indians mourned the loss of their sacred religious grounds. The Hills were where many sought the Great Spirit in Vision Quests. Black Elk, famous religious leader of the Dakota people, was taken to Harney Peak in the Black Hills-- the "center of the world"-- in his Great Vision." ref. "According to tribal history, the Oceti Sakowin (the Sioux or Dakota) came from the Black Hills, literally emerging from the Earth at a place called Wind Cave. The Oceti Sakowin consider the entire Black Hills region sacred and call it Paha Sapa, 'the heart of everything that is'". ref. "The Oglala (a Sioux, or Dakota band) become more centrally organized with most bands following Bull Bear with many of the rest following Smoke. This was a change from their previous more loosely governed bands with many leaders of comparable influence. The Bear Butte area in western South Dakota, extending west to Devil's Tower was the geographic and spiritual center of their world." ref.

Another statement in the National Park Service report reads: "The NPS must also consider another point. There is the danger that we would be giving a site a meaning and power for the Dakota that it did not historically have. If the evidence does not support historical use of the spring by the Dakota for any day to day or special ceremonial use, then maybe it was not special to them. If this were the case, then we (and all those non-Dakota interests who support giving the spring a special designation) may be creating Dakota history, rather than recording it. Since this process will be well documented, what we say now about Coldwater Spring will become permanent fact."

It is also true that there continues to be a danger that the same radical distortion of Dakota history associated with the Coldwater Spring deception could further give (in the National Park Service's and general publics' mind) the whole Mdote area a meaning and power for the Dakota that it does not historically have. And do so, by attributing the area as the ONLY PLACE that there is a Dakota creation myth and the ONLY PLACE that the Dakota have considered the center of the earth.

The Coldwater Spring site did not receive a special designation. However, the Coldwater Spring site that was formally occupied by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Mines, became federal property of another agency and the National Park Service will, according to a preliminary decision, acquire management and ownership of Coldwater for all peoples.

Dakota Creation Myth[s]:

Two Dakota creation storys within the bounaries of the Fort Snelling Reservation: (1.) The first two Dakota people were created [from the earth] on a prairie below St. Anthony Falls. (2.) "The water from Coldwater Spring comes out from underneath the land and some of the spirit beings that arrived went into the water and they appeared on earth here and so became Dakotahs." [from the water].

(1.) [from the earth - on a prairie] "A 1720 French manuscript account of the 'Sioux or Nadouesis,' a reference to terms invented by the Ojibwe to describe the Dakota people, states that according to the belief of the people themselves "the first Sciou and the first woman of their tribe came out of the earth, which brought them forth on a prairie below St. Anthony Falls, a location, interestingly, clearly within the boundaries of the Fort Snelling Reservation prior to its reduction in size in the 1850s, if not its later, reduced form (Ames 1980: 201)." ref.

(2.) [from the water - Coldwater Spring] The National Park Service report states that: "Gary Cavender also talks about Coldwater Spring and the Dakota origin tradition. This account is not related in the ethnography report, but it is very important. Cavender testified that, 'The Spring is the site of our creation myth (or 'Garden of Eden') and the beginning of Indian existence on Earth.'" "The water from Coldwater Spring comes out from underneath the land and some of the spirit beings that arrived went into the water and they appeared on earth here and so became Dakotahs." ref.

(3.) When addressing the subject of Dakota creation storie[s], Wilhelm K. Meya, one of the most active anthropologists working with the Lakota today, wrote: "The Mdewakanton are considered in the oral tradition, one of the most ancient divisions of the Sioux Nation or Ocetisakowin 'Seven Council Fires'. The sacred lake (Mille Lacs) figures prominently in Lakota/Dakota creation stories. The lake is considered sacred because the Dakota people emerged from it as human beings into this world." ref.(1.)... ref. (2.)

(4.) The Lakota, Dakota and Nakota Nations are all a part of the Oceti Sakowin, or Seven Council Fires. The Oceti Sakowin (Sioux or Dakota) Black Hills creation myth: "According to tribal history, the Oceti Sakowin came from the Black Hills, literally emerging from the Earth at a place called Wind Cave. The Oceti Sakowin consider the entire Black Hills region sacred and call it Paha Sapa, 'the heart of everything that is.'"

(5.) Another Dakota creation myth, a plains creation myth. The first man came from the soil (like Adam, in the Bible genesis creation story).

(6.) The Oglala, a Sioux (or Dakota) band of the Lakota tribe, have a creation myth "There are several legends that together give the genesis of the third of the four times, the Moon time. A brief of them is this: The Gods had their feasts in the regions under the world. There Skan created mankind to be the servants of the Gods. Mankind increased and became many, so Skan named them the Pte people. The chief of the Pte, Wa, and his wife, Ka had a daughter whose name was Ite"(Walker 1991:50-53)."

The people who are trying to create a false Dakota history, and doing so, by writing and speaking misinformation (lies - or maybe just delutional deceptive statements) that discribe the Mdote area as the ONLY PLACE that there is a Dakota creation myth, and do so in books, newspapers articles, internet articles, press conferences, Dakota history conferences, etc. are Chris Mato Nunpa, Gary Cavender, Ansela Waziyatawin, Jim Anderson, and Sheldon Wolfchild.

Because of the very important work that Dakota and Dakota rights activists are doing to rectify injustices being committed against the Dakota people in their sacred Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral/traditional homeland (references 1... 2... 3., these people who are wrongly claiming that there is ONLY one Dakota creation story and that it is in the Mdote area are radically demeaning the importance of the Mde Wakan area to the Dakota people, and I believe that by doing so they are not only radically betraying their own (Dakota) people but also betraying all other indigenous peoples.

During a three-day Dakota conference at Marshall, Minnesota's Southwest Minnesota State University, a conference that addressed the history of the European colonists' and (later) Euro-American's extreme mistreatment of the Dakota people, Angela Waziyatawin and her father, Chris Mato Nunpa, told the conference participates that according to THE (only) Dakota creation story, the place referred to as Bdote (called Mendota in English), is where THE (only) Dakota created story is.

When I was corresponding with Chris Mato Nunpa, he sent me a message wherein he wrote that he was going to tell Jim Anderson to quit working with me. And do so, because I believe and publicly teach (in contradiction to what he and his daughter teach) that there is [also] a Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation story. After Jim was told by Mato Nunpa to quit working with me, Jim quit working with me.

On a regular basis, Jim and I had been meeting with the mayor of Anoka. And I had set things up for Jim and other members of the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community to meet with the Anoka Human Rights Commission. And I had spoken with the mayor of Cambridge, Minnesota and she had scheduled Jim and I to address the Cambridge City Council. And I had set things up for Jim to address the Anoka-Hennepin School District Indian Education Parent Committee and staff, etc. And this all came to an erupt and rude end because of Mato Nunpa's influence over the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community's co-cultural chair and historian, Jim Anderson.

The three-day Dakota conference in Marshall had an agenda that totally left out [ignored] the history of the present-day Dakota people's ancestors in their sacred Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) homeland. The conference started with some Dakota people living in Mendota.

The nearly millennium long history of the present-day Dakota people's ancestors living in their sacred Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) homeland ref.(1.) ref.(2.)....the Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation story ref....the history of the "doctrine of discovery" associated with DuLuth setting up France's Coat of Arms in the sacred ground of the ancient Dakota people's main Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) area village and then claiming all of the Dakota people's Minnesota homeland for France ref (1.) ref (2.)...the history of how the European colonists used the Mille Lacs Dakota people's weakness to abuse alcohol to lure many of them from their sacred Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) homeland to far away trading posts ref.(1.) ref.(2.)....the history of how the European colonists tricked and used a band of Ojibwe to violently force the last remaining Dakota from their sacred Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) homeland and spiritual center ref..... the local (MN), national (U.S.A.) and international movement to change the profane name of the "Rum River" (a river located in the Dakota's sacred Mille Lacs Lake ancestral homeland) back to it's sacred Dakota name [Wakpa Wakan] ref...the establishment of the beginning stage of an Anoka, Minnesota (A city located at the confluence the Mississippi and "Rum" rivers) Anoka Dakota Unity Alliance ref.....the activist work near the confluence of the Mississippi and "Rum" rivers to influence the Roman Catholic Church to change the racist name of a Catholic organization named the Knights of Columbus and to also revoke the 15 century papal bull (Inter Caetera], a papal bull that is the source of the establishment of brutal colonialism and the hateful racism against the Dakota people in their Mille Lacs Lake homeland ref. ref. ref. ....the work to change the derogatory name of Mille Lacs Kathio State Park to Mille Lacs Isanti State Park ref...... my draft Minnesota Indian Affairs Council resolution (which the MIAC asked me to write) supporting the bill to change our state's derogatory geographic place names that are offensive to Natives, include the profane "Rum River" name ref....the work (supported by Archbishop Harry Flynn) to change the profane name of a bar and liquor store in Wahkon, Minnesota, a town located on the south shore of Mille Lacs Lake ref....Jim Anderson's Rum River name-change movement activist activities ref....and the work to regain the Dakota people's Wakpa Wakan (Rum River) watershed ancestral/traditional homeland, including the Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) area, were not mentioned by any of the conference's organizers, nor quest speakers. ref. (1.) ref. (2.)

There is a group of Dakota activists and Dakota sympathizers who are so obsessed with the Mdote/Bdote area that they have become delusional, thinking that the Bdote area is where it is all at for the Dakota people, and that there are no other very sacred Dakota areas. And instead of working with activists who are working to rectify injustices being committed against the Dakota in other very sacred Dakota ancestral homelands, they have become hatefully competitive against them. They want all the attention on themselves and the Bdote area and will use whatever evil tactics they want to discredit other activists and their work. They have become like a delusional cult.

History of the Dakota in their Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral homeland: "In 1656, the Dakotas were living near Mille Lacs in five villages numbering about 5,000 people. It is possible that the Tetons and Yanktons had at this point already began migrating west, although Hennepin found them above the Falls of St. Anthony on the Mississippi River in 1680. In 1701, they were at Lake Traverse. The Yankon and Yantonai left Mille Lacs at about this time." (ref.) http://www.fsst.org/PDFs/History_FlandreauSanteeSioux.pdf

"From what was written on this subject by Hennepin, La Hontan, Le Sueur, and Charlevoix, and from the maps published under the superintendence of these authors, it is sufficiently clear that in the latter part of the 17th century the principal residence of the Isanyati Sioux [Mdewakanton, Wahpeton, Wahpekute, and Sisseton] was about the headwaters of Rum river, whence they extended their hunts to St Croix and Mississippi rivers, and down the latter nearly or quite as far as the mouth of the Wisconsin. " (Minn. Hist. Soc. Coll, I, 295, 1872.) reference

"Father Louis Hennepin visited the Sioux at Mille Lacs Lake in 1680 and reported that it was the sacred lake of these Indians and the focal point of the whole nation, from which the tribes and bands spread out over a wide area. (Wilford 1944:329)." reference

"The Mille Lacs area is rich in Native American history, from ancient tribes from the Old Copper Tradition dating back over 4,000 years, to the early Dakota people, a band called the Mdewakanton 'the people who live by the water of the Great Spirit.'" reference

"Hundreds of years before Europeans settled in the region, the Dakota people established permanent villages along the shores of Ogechie Lake, and the Rum River. These people came to be known as the Mdewakanton, which translated means 'Water of the Great Spirit.'" reference

According to one Dakota creation story, a creation story that "figures prominently in Lakota/Dakota creation stories", the sacred lake Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) is where the Dakota emerged as human beings into this world. The sacred lake is one of the Dakota's Garden of Eden sites. Evidence indicates that it is their primary Garden of Eden site, and that it is the Garden of Eden and Jerusalem (Holy Land) from which they were forced out, and to which they will return. It is where one of their creation stories says their nation was born. And it is where their primary genesis site is located. And it is where their genocide first began.

Griff Wigley, the Project Leader, Minnesota Sesquicentennial Advisory Committee for Native American Partnering (SACNAP) knowingly presents (despite my public protesting) some of the mentioned above Dakota activists' radical distortion of Dakota history on his SACNAP web site. ref..

During a publicly posted debate between Wigley and I, a debate on his Native American Partnering blog, Wigley wrote: "As I said to you that day at Coldwater, it doesn't matter to me right now whether there are one, two, or many Dakota creation stories. Everyone agrees about the importance/sacredness of the B'dote (M'dote) and Coldwater areas. That's all that matters, so leave it at that."

So, according to Griff Wigley, it was alright (during that particular time, that is, before the federal government decided for or against giving Coldwater a special designation) for some Dakota activists to lie to both the federal government and the general public, and also for him to post their lies on his web site...and do so, in order to help influence the federal government and general public to believe that the Mdote area is more important to the Dakota people than it is.

Evidently, Griff Wigley believed that it was alright for him and some Dakota activists to radically distort Dakota history, so that the federal government would believe that the Mdote area is the ONLY PLACE where there is a Dakota creation story, and by doing so, help influence the National Park Service (a federal government agency) to decide to designate the Coldwater Spring site as a federally recognized Dakota sacred site - and also discredit me and my (as well as Leonard Wabasha's) activist work in the Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) area.

And according to Griff Wigley, only after this occurred, or the federal government decided not to give Coldwater Spring a special designation, would it be appropriate for him (providing, the mentioned above Dakota activists finally decided to tell the truth about Dakota history) to acknowledge that there is a Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation story, and that the Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) area is (a least in the minds of a lot of Dakota people) actually more important to the Dakota than the Mdote area. Thus making it (in Wigley's mind) the appropriate time to go whole heartedly forward with the effort to rectify the injustices being committed against the Dakota in their sacred Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) area.

We are still waiting for the mentioned above Dakota activists to tell the truth about Dakota history.

reference: Dakota Creation Stories

By Thomas Dahlheimer,

Griff Wigley is the Project Leader, Minnesota Sesquicentennial Advisory Committee for Native American Partnering (SACNAP). He has a Minnesota Sesquicentennial Commission guided Native American Minnesota blog site. He displayed a blog on his site, titled: "My Problem with Thomas Dahlheimer's open letter to the Oyate." We were corresponding with comments in response to this blog. He continues to not post the following comments of mine. 

Click letter to the Oyate to read my letter to the Oyate. In my letter to the Oyate I displayed a link to a longer presentation of the letter, tilted Dakota Creation Stories.

My un-posted comments to Wigley and his blog readers:

…..You wrote: "I already explained my position re: the Sesqui statement on genocide. I was glad to see it on their web site and I think it's significant that it's still there. But it falls far short of a public acknowledgment that Chris and others would like to see.

Never-the-less, the Sesquicentennial Commission did admitted genocide.

You wrote: "As I said to you that day at Coldwater, it doesn't matter to me right now whether there are one, two, or many Dakota creation stories. Everyone agrees about the importance/sacredness of the B'dote and Coldwater areas. That's all that matters, so leave it at that.

Your comment "it's all that matters" is getting me angry now. Who are you to say, "that's all that matters". Have you been working to rectify injustices being committed against the Dakota within their Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral homeland for over a decade? There is a Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation story, and not only two Mendota area Dakota creation stories. Christ Mato Nunpa and Jim Anderson used the Coldwater Springs gathering to spread their lies that misinform people about where all of the Dakota creation stories are located. It is important that people know that there is a Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation story, and not just two Mendota area Dakota creation stories. This is a common practice of theirs. And you post their lies on your blog.

You wrote: "I asked you to explain your obsession with the creation stories and your explanation then didn't really make sense to me. But your letter's inclusion of your statement that you believe you've been given it as a goal from the Great Spirit *does* explain it. I think you're very misguided and mistaken… and that continuing in this way really hurts your cause of getting the Rum River renamed.

I do not care very much what you think! I do not have an obsession with creation stories. Chris Mato Nunpa and Jim Anderson have an obsession with the Mendota area, including the two Mendota area creation stories… and do so, to the extent that they will not publicly acknowledge that there is also a Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation story. This is an injustice that I am trying to rectify.

Maybe you do not know that Native creation stories add to the importance Natives tribes place on sacred sites of theirs.

In response to my letter to the Oyate submission, the editor of the Sota Iyaye wrote: "Great". He did not have a problem with my belief and statement about the Great Spirit. It's you who are very misguided and mistaken…and your insulting comments could be hurting my movement to change the name of the Rum River.

___________________________________________________________________

Comments by Dakota Indians:

Jeff wrote:

I grew up by the Rum River and never knew it's significance as a kid. I have since become re-connected with my deceased Dakota fathers' side of the family. I have learned a lot about what was important to our ancestors. The Mille Lacs area creation story is paramount to our ancestral identity as is the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers story. They are all wakan. The name "Rum" should definitely be dropped and changed to something more appropriate. Wakan or Spirit River, for instance.

Seems to me that claiming any ancestral rights to land in the vicinity of the Twin Cities metropolitan area spells M-O-N-E-Y. This may be why the individuals you mention seem to be disregarding the Dakota creation story of Mille Lacs Lake. Or it may be to avoid confusing wasicu who do not understand these things but with the intent of gaining rights to lands near the Twin Cities in lieu of rights to the Wakan River.

Jeff's Uncle wrote:

In all my travels amongst the people I personally have never heard it said that Mendota was credited with being the 'Center' of Dakota origins. Mendota was given this particular spelling and pronunciation by the American Fur Company who established a fur trading post there and the word itself comes from the Dakota word 'mdote' meaning where 'one river joins another or meets another' (the St Peters River now called the Minnesota R., and the Miss. R.) Ft. Snelling was established by the American gov't near that location to claim, protect, and establish their influence in the region. The natives of Mendota are called Mdewakantons for a reason. When working amongst my Lakotah brothers even they referred to their place of origins as 'Spirit Lake'. More can be said of the above issue but will let this suffice for now.

The Dakota's name for Mille Lacs Lake is Mde Wakan. When translated Mde means Lake, and when Wakan is translated it means Spirit. When translated into English Mde Wakan means Spirit Lake.  When translated into English Mdewakanton means people born of the waters of Spirit Lake.

It has been the tradition of Minnesota to distort the true history of Minnesota in order to cover up the atrocities it has committed against MN's Natives, and Wigley is doing a good job in keeping the tradition of covering up the truth going. He does not want the people of Minnesota to know about what happened in the Mille Lacs Lake area, therefore, he likes the way some leading Dakota activists are distorting the Dakota's history and therefore helps them promote their lies, and by doing so, distracts attention away from the Mille Lacs Lake area and the atrocities white people committed against the Dakotas within their sacred Mille Lacs Lake traditional/ancestral homeland.

For several months Wigley had not blogged anything about the bill to change Minnesota's derogatory geographic place names, including the derogatory Rum River name. Nor did he blog anything about the local (MN), national (U.S.A.) and international movement to change the faulty-translation and profane name of the Rum River back to its sacred Dakota name [Wakan]. Nor did he blog anything about the history of the Dakota people in their sacred Mille Lacs Lake ancestral homeland, where they had lived for nearly a thousand years. Nor did he blog anything about the Dakota's Mille Lacs Lake creation story. Nor did he blog anything about how the Dakota were violently forced from their sacred Mille Lacs Lake and Wakan/"Rum" River Watershed ancestral homeland. Nor did he blog anything about how Duluth, while following the edicts of his King and Pope, set up France's Coat of Arms in the Dakota's main Mille Lacs Lake area village and claimed all of the Dakota's Minnesota land for France. Land that was later transferred over to Britain by way of papal bull sanctioned international European colonial law , and even later, by way of following the same racist process or law, to the U.S.A.. Nor did he blog anything about the many Dakota rights activist initiative in the area, including the petition to change the derogatory name of Mille Lacs Kathio State Park. Nor did blog anything about the movement to regain the Dakota's Mille Lacs ancestral homeland . Nor did he blog anything about the Minnesota Indian Affairs Council's Draft resolution to change MN's derogatory names. Nor did he blog anything about the related Minnesota Apology Resoltution . Nor did he blog anything about the Dakota activist initiatives in Anoka, Minnesota, a city located at the confluence of the Wakan (Rum) and Mississippi rivers. And when he was forced to add a blog about the Mille Lacs Lake area it was deceptive and hateful, his way of discrediting the Dakota's and my activist work within the Dakota's sacred Mille Lacs Lake and Wakan/"Rum" River Watershed ancestral homeland.

More information about this topic can be viewed and read by clicking

(1.) http://www.towahkon.org/Dakotahistory.html

(2.) http://newsfornatives.com/blog/2008/02/16/mdewakanton-rights-activist-initiatives/

(3.) http://www.towahkon.org/alliance.html

(4.) http://www.towahkon.org/Changeknights.html

(5.) http://republicoflakota.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=18&sid=3c1461761b6dbdc2f0facadfbae1fb

(6.) http://www.towahkon.org/summary.html

The founder and leader of the largest hippie community in the world [Stephen Gaskin] is an internationally renowned leader of the countercultural revolution. Gaskin once wrote: "The word wakan has a strong and universal concept and people around the world know something about it." The purpose of Gaskin’s hippy community is to be wakan (holy) and influence the whole world to become wakan. This hippie community once had 1500 members, and according to Stephen Gaskin, it is a demonstration project for a sustainable future, a nonviolent eco-friendly cooperative community of pioneers ushering in a new age.

Gaskin's internationally renowned ecovillage is called The Farm. It is located in Tennessee. It was established in the late 1960s. Steven Gaskin and 200 of his hippie followers formed into a commune and moved from the San Francisco Bay area to the small town of Summertown Tennessee. And near this town they set up their communal village. Today it’s the largest hippie commune in the world. It has 250 members and it is very successful. A letter of mine was published in the Farm’s FREE PRESS newsletter. And on The Farm’s website there is a link to the Hippie Museum wherein there is an introduction to an article of mine about my hippie visionary mission. A link to this article is also displayed on Hippyland, the world's largest hippie website.

Hippyland (or Hippy.com) is a website with 26,000 registered members. An article of mine [A 1960s Hippie Activist] was recently posted on this site’s [ACTIVIST SPOTLIGHT] display.

Skip Stone is the creator and webmaster of Hippyland. He has a special place on his Hippyland site where he posts hippie articles about religion. It is named Coolove. He recently posted an article of mine on Coolove. This article is Hippyland’s [MOST READ ARTICLE ABOUT RELIGION]. Click Coolove to view and read this article. Albert Bates is an internationally renowned hippie counter-cultural activist and a very prominent member of The Farm. He is the author of several books. One of his books Climate in Crisis is introduced by Al Gore. In respect to my Coolove article he wrote, while corresponding with me, "good article".

 After I sent the Pontifical Council For Justice And Peace (1.) a letter that I received from Archbishop Harry Flynn, (2.) a letter from the Board of Directors of theTekawitha Conference - a Roman Catholic North American indigenous peoples conference representing over 100 tribes - and (3.) an article about my Rum River name-change movement and associated Catholic visionary movement, I received a letter from the Pontifical Council For Justice And Peace.

Archbishop Harry Flynn has sent me letters of support for some of his activist initiatives. To view and read the archbishop's letters of support click letters .

National Multicultural Institute's October 2008 newsletter [SPOTLITE] posting of an article of mine can be viewed and read by clicking Independent Indigenous Sovereign Nations . An excerpt from this article reads:

..."However, the indigenous peoples living in this land our still being denied three of their--endowed by the Creator--unalienable equality rights, or fundamental human rights. The right to absolute root ownership of their traditional/ancestral homelands, the right to be recognized and treated as full independent sovereign nations and the--freedom of religion--right to fully re-establish their traditional religions within their sacred ancestral homelands"..

An article of mine about this topic is displayed on the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community's website. To view and read this article click Regaining the
Mdewakanton Mille Lacs ancestral homeland. An excerpt from this article reads:

"The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe oral tradition tells that, by the end of the 1760s Kathio battle, their ancestors had violently forced the Dakota from their Mille Lacs area homeland; and that that is how they took possession of the Mille Lacs area land that they now live on. However, because they were indigenous red pagans they didn’t own the land that they, with the help of the Europeans, took from the Dakota people. And these indigenous red Ojibwe pagans, to this present-day, do not own the land that they are now living on, its U.S.A federal land. The indigenous people of the Americas, still, do not have a papal granted moral right to own land. The papal bull Inter Caetera has not yet been revoked. I am working to rectify this injustice. At least a part of the Dakota people’s original Mille Lacs area homeland should be give back to them."

Indian County Today, the world’s leading American Indian news source, published my letter to the editor Supports restitution . This letter was also published in the Saint Cloud Visitor, a Roman Catholic diocesan newspaper.

An excerpt from the letter reads - "Our bishops are finally starting to understand that 500-plus years ago our church instigated an injustice against the indigenous peoples of the Western hemisphere. They need to apologize for what happened, work toward stopping the ongoing injustice, and offer restitution to the indigenous peoples of the Americas, which includes protesting against the current proposed legislation to make "illegal" immigrants felons. It's time to give the indigenous peoples' homelands back to them and quit imposing our culture on them."

The Winona Daily News published a letter of mine, titled, State looks to settle up with the past. Excerpts from this letter read:

"Leonard Wabasha, a hereditary chief of the Dakota and director of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux (Dakota) Community Cultural Resource Department, invited me to address the Dakota tribal leaders and government officials during the May 16 reconciliatory ceremony in Winona.

"When Minnesotans become aware of or able to look at their own history and acknowledge the painful wounds of ethnocide and genocide right in their own state, they will be inspired to go through a radical social, political and religious transformation. A peaceful cultural revolution will occur, and Minnesotans will be changed for the better. And this will help to heal the Dakota Oyate’s painful wounds caused by ethnocide and genocide.”

The Minnesota Indian Affairs Council (MIAC) asked me to write and send Anna Marie Hill, the council's Executive Director, a MIAC Draft Resolution endorsing the bill to replace Minnesota’s derogatory geographic site names that are offensive to American Indians. Alfred Bone Shirt (Sigangu), a nationally renowned American Indian activist who is the contact person for the Dakota-Lakota-Nakota Human Rights Advocacy Coalition, published my Minnesota Indian Affairs Council Draft Resolution. My- Minnesota Apology Resolution is similar to and associated with his MIAC Draft Resolution. Two excerpts from Minnesota Apology Resolution read:

(4.) acknowledge the root cause of the subjugation and exploitation of Minnesota Indian tribes, as being the papal bull of 1493 (Inter Caetera); wherein, Pope Alexander IV directed colonial European nations to go to the Americas and "subjugate the barbaric people and their lands, and bring them to the faith".

(5.) acknowledge that this papal bull (Inter Caetera) was used to formulate colonial European international law, a law that was later, both, incorporated into United States law as well as used to influence American citizens, including Minnesota citizens, to conform to a unified white racist or white supremacist and religious sectarian proselytizing mindset that was, and still is, the root cause of the subjugation and exploitation of Minnesota Indian tribes as well as all other U.S. Indian tribes.

Indigenous Peoples Literature posted an article of mine titled: Popes Remarks Whitewashed The Genocide Of Indigenous Peoples. An excerpt from this article reads:

"Hopefully, Pope Benedict XVI will soon formally revoke the 15th century papal bulls which were primarily responsible for the horrible atrocities committed against Indigenous Peoples and then lead the Catholic Church and Western "Civilization" through a process of radical transformation, and by doing so, lead humanity into a new age, wherein Indigenous Peoples will be given their due respect."

In respect to this coming new age, there is an article of mine wherein I presented the following statement.

 In the Lord's Prayer Jesus said: "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven". In reference to these words, the Catechism Of The Catholic Church says, in 2825 that: "For he did not say, thy will be done in me or in us, but on earth, the whole earth, so that error may be banished from it, truth take root in it, all vice be destroyed on it, virtue flourish on it, and the earth no longer differ from heaven."

 Introduction

Hippyland is the world's biggest hippie site on the internet. It's a site with 26,000 registered members. On the site's recommended "Philosophy & Religion" links to articles there is a link to the following article of mine. The link is titled Hippie Visionary

The Farm is the world's biggest and most well known hippie community in the world. It's a world renowned eco-village. There is a hippie museum link on The Farm's website homepage.  On this hippie museum website, there is a picture of me as well as an introduction to the following article. 

The article is about, both, my international movement to regain the sacred Dakota Indian name for Minnesota's Rum River (Wakan) as well as my associated hippie visionary mission, a mission with a worldview around the word wakan.

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Changing Offensive Names And Related Mission

By Thomas Ivan Dahlheimer

My international movement to rename Minnesota's Rum River is steadily gaining more and more support. Recently, several Minnesota legislators sent me letters wherein they thanked me for the work that I am doing to change this river's derogatory name. I have also received letters from both U.S. Senator Mark Dayton as well as from U.S. Congressman James Oberstar. They have been giving and offering me assistance.

One of Minnesota's state legislators has given his support and some of the other Minnesota legislators who I have received letters from are interested in possibly sponsoring a purposed state bill that I wrote and have displayed on my website. If a legislator or legislators would decide to sponsor this purposed bill and the legislators passed it 13 of Minnesota's geographic place names that are derogatory and offensive to Native Americans would be replaced. Including, the Rum River, West Branch Rum River, Redskin Lake, Cut foot Sioux Lake, Sioux River, Sioux Lake, Little Sioux Lake, Indian Sioux River, East Savage Lake, Savage Lake, Snake River, Devil Track Lake and Devil Track River.

UPDATE: With the approval of the Minnesota Indian Affairs Council (MIAC) Rep. Mike Jaros introduced the bill to the Minnesota legislature. Also, the MIAC asked me to write and send it a MIAC draft resolution asking the Minnesota Legislature to pass the bill, which I did. And after sending it to the contact person for the Dakota-Lakota-Nakota Human Rights Advocacy Coalition [Alfred Bone Shirt] he posted it on his organization's Yahoo group site. ref. .

According to the Minnesota Historical Society's website: "The name of Rum River, which Carver in 1766 and Pike in 1805 found in use by English-speaking fur traders, was indirectly derived from the Dakota. Their name of Mille Lacs, Mde Wakan, translated Spirit Lake, was given to its river but was changed by the white men to the most common spirituous liquor brought into the Northwest, rum, which brought misery and ruin, as Du Luth observed of brandy, to many of the Indians. The map of Maj. Stephen H. Long's expedition in 1823 has these names, Spirit Lake and Rum River. Nicollet's map, published in 1843, has "Iskode Wabo or Rum R.," this name given by the Ojibwe but derived by them from the white men's perversion of the ancient Dakota name Wakan, being in more exact translation "Spirit Water."

Because rum "brought misery and ruin to many of the Indians" and also because it is the common belief that the name (Rum) is a faulty-translation of the sacred Dakota name for the river (Wakan), translated as (Great) Spirit, I therefore believe that this river's white man name (Rum) is profane, derogatory and offensive to Native Americans and should therefore be changed back to its sacred Dakota name, as do also a growing number of Dakota Indians as well as Indians of many other tribes.

Now-a-days, all across our county, "Redskin", and "Savage" are considered derogatory names for Native Americans. And the name Sioux for the Dakota people is an derogatory and offensive name. According to the Minnesota Historical Society's website: "The Little and Big Sioux Rivers, the latter forming the northwest boundary of Iowa, were named for the Dakota or Sioux, who inhabited this region. The name Sioux is the terminal part of Nadouesioux, a term of hatred, meaning snakes or enemies, which was applied by the Ojibwe and other Algonquians to this people."

And according to the Minnesota Historical Society's website: "Devil Track River, wrote Gilfillan, "...is Manido bimadagakowini zibi, meaning the spirits (or God) walking-place-on-the-ice river." The Ojibwe applied this name primarily to Devil Track Lake, and thence, according to their custom, to the out-flowing river. The name implies mystery or something supernatural about the lake and its winter covering of ice, but without the supremely evil idea that is given in the white men's translation."

Therefore, I believe that our state's names for Devil Track Lake and Devil Track River are names that are derogatory and offensive to the Ojibwe. I would like these names changed to Manido Track Lake and Manido Track River. Manido translates as Great Spirit or God.

On September 27, I met with Christopher Leifeld, the executive director of the Minnesota Catholic Conference. The MCC is the public policy voice of Minnesota's Catholic bishops. The MCC sometimes helps legislators author bills, plus it also gives its support for some bills. I recently had received a letter from Archbishop Harry Flynn wherein he thanked me for my update letter on my "Catholic social activist ministry to rename the Rum River and ossociated visionary ministry". Therefore, during our meeting, we talked about my "associated visionary ministry" for about a half hour. At the time, I mentioned that a secretary Bishop of the Vatican's Pontifical Council on Peace and Justice had sent me a letter wherein he let me know that the council had "taken note" of my letter about my "campaign" to rename the Rum River and "associated material". The "associated material" was about my "associated visionary ministry".

And after South Dakota's 2003 Hall of Fame winner (Rev. Stanislaus Maudlin) read my Mille Lacs Messenger letter concerning my Catholic social activist ministry to rename the Rum River and associated visionary ministry, he sent me an e-mail asking that I add his name to my list of people who support the effort to change the Rum River's name. Rev. Maudlin is the abbot of Blue Cloud Abbet (BCA) and founder and executive director of BCA's American Indian Research Center. And Rev. Maudlin is also a prominent leader of the Tekakwitha Conference, a Catholic American Indian organization representing hundreds of tribes. And he is in constant correspondence with the Vatican Commission on Traditional Religions. During the 1983 Tekakwitha Conference, Rev. Maudlin addressed a large group of conference participants and said "there is a whole world view behind the word wakan".

And after two nationally renowned American Indian activists, Christine Rose and Mike Graham, read my Mille Lacs Messenger letter concerning my Catholic social activist ministry to rename the Rum River and associated visionary ministry, they sent me e-mails wherein they both thanked me for sending them the "press release" " as well as asked me to "keep up the good work".

As previously mentioned, the sacred Dakota name for the currently name Rum River (Wakan) was desecrated by a faulty translation name (Rum) by white men in the late 1800's. They translated Wakan, correctly translated as (Great) Spirit, to mean a spirituous liquor (rum).

The Dakota people are used to portray all Indians in Hollywood, anyone wanting to see a "real Indian" wants to see a war bonnet and a tipi. Therefore, I believe that the world psychic views all Indians as Dakota (or Dakota/Lakota/Nakota) people; and that when people watch the traditional Hollywood movies about Indians they often hear the Dakota using the word wakan (sacred), or the combined words Wakan-Tonka (Spirit-Great). Hence, a lot of people around the world believe that the word wakan and the name Wakan-Tonka are used by all Indians. Stephen Gaskin, an internationally renowned youth of the 1960s hippie countercultural leader, a leader of a 250 member countercultural community, and Green Party candidate for President in the year 2000 once wrote: "The word wakan has a strong and universal concept and people all around the world know something about it."

Note: Wakan, sometimes spelled Wahkon, is the traditional Dakota name for the Great Spirit.
Wakantonka, sometimes spelled Wahkontonka, is the Dakota's new name for the Great Spirit.
The word wakan means holy or sacred, it is also sometimes spelled wahkon.

The traditional Dakota name for the Great Spirit (Wakan) is sometimes spelled Wahkon, as is the city of Wahkon, Minnesota, a city located on the south end of Mille Lacs Lake. Wahkon is where both the Rum River Name Change Organization's headquarters are located and where my--world view around the word wahkon--globalization visionary mission's headquarters are located.

I went to the 1983 Tekakwitha Conference with a combined youth of the 1960s counter-cultural and Catholic--world view around the word wahkon--globalization visionary mission. And a short while after Rev. Maudlin addressed this conference and said "there is a whole word view around the word wahkon", I was interviewed by Matthew Fox, the conference's keynote speaker and international leader of the Catholic Church's globalization movement to unite humanity within a single united global culture, a culture made up of the best of the past of all the world's different cultures and traditions.

During the interview, Fox told me that Thomas Merton, an internationally renowned Catholic monk and author who's books were popular amongst the 1960s youth counter-cultural revolutionaries, had asked him to reach out to the youth of the 1960s counter-cultural revolution with the intent to help them find the truth and live holy lives. And then Fox asked me, a youth of the 1960s counter-cultural revolutionary, what I thought about this connection with Thomas Merton, I responded by telling him about my strongly influenced by Merton--world view around the word wahkon--Catholic and counter-cultural globalization movement to unite humanity within a single united global culture, a culture made up of the past of the past of all the world's different cultures and traditions, a culture that would be wahkon (sacred), or predominately permeated with the culture(s) of the aboriginal people of the Americas. And near the end of the interview, Fox asked me to keep in touch with him, so as to keep him informed about the progress of my Catholic and counter-cultural globalization mission. And a couple of years ago, Fox sent me a letter wherein he expressed his support for the effort to change the Rum River name.

And during the 1984 Mr. & Mrs. I. C. Rainbow family reunion, my uncle Don Rainbow, a vice president of a Christian college, addressed the seventeen families gathered at that Rainbow family reunion and said: " A Rainbow is a sign of God's salvation plan and I believe that we may be used to glorify God more than any other family in the world." He made this very grandiose statement after I spoke to him about my vision of our family coming together in kinship tribalism in order to promote the tribal way and to also promote my Catholic expression of the counterculture's--world view around the word wahkon --globalization mission.

Years later, I met and became friends with Chris McCloud, an internationally renowned song writer who in the 1960s socialized with Paul McCarthy and other internationally renowned countercultural leaders. When McCloud was socializing with McCarthy he was of the--strongly influenced by Thomas Merton--Catholic expression of the counterculture's world unifying globalization movement.

In the 1960s, I met and became friends with Richard Carter. Carter was a San Francisco Bay area leader of the countercultural revolution and he occasionally met with Stephen Gaskin. When Gaskin and his commune moved to Summertown Tennessee, Richard Carter, his wife (Louis) and I moved to Wahkon, Minnesota. Currently, Richard Carter is a binationally renowned environmentalist. And the headquarters of my--world view around the word wahkon--visionary mission are located in Wahkon, Minnesota U.S.A..

On December 19, 2008 - the following letter to the editor of mine was published in the Anoka County Union, a Minnesota county newspaper. The population of Anoka County is 320,803 and its county seat is located in Anoka, Minnesota, a city located at the confluence of the 'Rum' and Mississippi rivers.

Indigenous Peoples Rights

In an article published in Indian Country Today, the world's leading American Indian news source, titled - Newcomb: World Conservation Congress endorses Declaration there are two statements that I would like to share with Anoka County Union readers.

With the passage of the document, "Implementing the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples," the WCC also acknowledges a connection between the colonization of Indigenous Peoples' lands and territories and several Vatican papal decrees and other similar documents from the fifteenth and later centuries. The motion explains that these were official authorizations to "invade, capture, vanquish" and "subdue" Indigenous Peoples, "subjugate" them and "reduce their persons to perpetual slavery" and "to take away all their possessions and property."

The motion acknowledges that the effect of these authorizations, and the doctrines that followed from them, such as the "doctrine of discovery," "terra nullius" and "terra nullus," not only have been ecologically and culturally destructive for Indigenous Peoples, their lands, territories and resources, but also made passage of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples necessary. source

A statement from my new article, 'A Tribal Cultures Influenced Catholic Globalization Mission' reads:

Indigenous Peoples Literature is an award winning site about indigenous peoples issues. This site has been accessed over 10,000,000 times. IPL posted my article, "Restoring The Fundamental Human Rights Of Indigenous Peoples". In response to this posting, both Steven Newcomb and Tony Castanha - the two internationally renowned leaders of the movement to restore the fundamental human rights of indigenous peoples by trying to influence the Vatican (Pope) to publicly revoke two 15th century Papal Bulls - contacted me. Newcomb wrote: 'Thomas, good article'. And Rob Capriccioso, an author for Indian Country Today, the world's leading American Indian news source, also contacted me and presented his ICT article about this topic. Tony Castanha has also contacted me to thank me for my youtube video wherein I protest against the Papal Bull Inter Caetera.

source, with reference links:

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Also, Tony Castanha contacted me and said, in responce to an article of mine titled Independent Indigenous Sovereign Nations, "this is a very good article".

And after sending Paul Gorski, a nationally and internationally renowned multicultural educator and social activist, my article Independent Indigenous Sovereign Nations for publication on his MultiCultural Pavilion website's MCP digest e-mail forum, he posted my article. And then, after the Program Manager for the National MultiCultural Institute [Amy Kasi] read my article on the MCP digest she contacted me and asked if I would allow the National Multicultural Institute (NMCI) to post a quoted tidbit of mine and link to my Indigenous Peoples Literature article Independent Indigenous Sovereign Nations in the National MultiCultural Institute's upcoming 2008 October newsletter. I said YES, and it was recently post on the NMCI's October newsletter. It was THE article posted on the newsletter's October SPOTLIGHT display.

When requesting permission to display my article in the NMCI newsletter, Amy Kasi wrote: "I think it would be a valuable resource for anyone interested in not only indigenous peoples but also the history of the US and human rights violations in the US." NMCI sends out monthly newsletters to a network of almost 3500 members.

The effort to change the faulty-translation and profane name of the Rum River has received support from organizations and individuals. Some of them include: two Mdewakanton Dakota Communities, Cankdeska Cikana Community College, the Tekakwitha Conference - a Catholic Native American organization representing hundreds of tribes -, the UN Secretariat of the Permanent Forum On Indigenous Issues, the National Environmental Coalition of Native Americans, Joe Day - both the Executive Director of the Minnesota Indian Affairs Council as well as President of the Governor's Interstate Indian Council - , Russell Means - an internationally renowned American Indian activist -, Charles E. Trimble - an international renowned Native American activist. Mike Graham - a nationally renowned Native American activist -, Christine Rose - a nationally renowned Native American activist -, Archbishop Harry Flynn of the Archdiocese of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Bishop John Kinney of the Diocese of Saint Cloud, Rev. Stan Maudlin - a prominent leader of the international Tekakwitha Conference, abbot of Blue Cloud Abbey and founder and Executive Director of American Indian Research Center. American Indian Cultural Research Center at South Dakota's Blue Cloud Abbey, Matthew Fox - an internationally renowned Christian theologian, environmentalist, indigenous rights activist and founder of Wisdom University. Wisdom University, Pax Christi USA, and many other organizations and prominent people. And thirty pastors of Christian churches located along the "Rum" River corridor. In the process soliciting support for the effort to change the Rum River name, I have found that there is almost unanimous support for the effort to change the name by Christian ministers.

The National Catholic Reporter (NCR) published a letter of mine about my effort to change the faulty-translation and profane name of Minnesota's Rum River back to its sacred Dakota (Sioux) name Wakan, which is sometimes spelled Wahkon. NCR is a news weekly that reports news about global peace and justice issues. It has over 120,000 loyal readers in 96 countries. The NCR describes me as a "Catholic social activist". And I am also being described as a Catholic visionary prophet with a world view around the word wahkon. I sent a letter about these two associated missions of mine to the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, and I recieved a responce letter from the council's secretary [Bishop Giampaola Crepaldi], wherein he wrote: "The Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace" has taken note of your campaign (Rum River name-change campaign) and the associated material you sent with your letter." The associated material was about my prophetic visionary mission with a world view around the word wahkon, including a list of my prophetic credentials.

In some circles that promote a single global culture, a culture made up of the best of the past of all the world's different peoples' cultures and traditions, a culture wherein humanity will hopefully be united, the culture of the indigenous people of the Americas is believed to be the most valuable culture. And I also believe that the culture of the indigenous people of the Americans is the most valuable culture. Therefore, I am in the process of getting a group of people together who believe in my visionary mission, and then we will incorporate many aspect of the indigenous people of the Americans culture into our expression of a single united global culture, making our culture a culture that is predominantly permeated with the culture(s) of the indigenous people of the Americas. And I believe our future (Wahkon) single united global culture will be the culture wherein all of humanity will be united. I believe that this culture will (first) become the culture of America and that it will then spread throughout the whole world. Ref. (1.) (2.)

 My mission to unit humanity within a single united global culture is an end-time mission. Therefore, my mission will not be accomplished until it ushers in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. And because Jesus Christ's second coming will not occur until all nations have been evangelized to both the Catholic Church as well as to a one-world Catholic monarchial system of government, my mission will not be accomplished until members of my maternal kinship family (the Mr. and Mrs. I.C. Rainbow family) as well as other people who will join this family are ruling and reigning over the entire world and have everything ready for Jesus to come and sit down on the throne of His Kingdom, a Kingdom that will have been made completely ready for Him.

In the book of Revelation chapter 4, verse 3, a rainbow is pictured around about the throne. Could this mean that some members of the I.C. Rainbow family will take dominion back from Satan and then begin ruling and reigning (with Christ spiritually present on the throne) over the entire world prior to Jesus' Second Coming? I believe that it does mean this. Plus, in the book of Revelation Chapter10, Verse 1-5, a messenger appears and he is pictured with a rainbow over his head and he is proclaiming that "there shall be delay no longer". These are the words that I am proclaiming. And in this same scripture, an angle says that when this messenger sounds the trumpet, "the mystery of God will be accomplished". I am "sounding a trumpet", or announcing that "the mystery of God will be accomplished".

When Jesus was telling his disciples about the future, and how things would evolve toward accomplishing God's plan, and that this would lead up to the manifestation of evidence (signs) that would indicated that His second coming was a hand, He said: "And they (the Jews in Israel)...shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." - Luke 21:24. In this verse, Jesus is described as a teacher informing His disciples that when the end of the age was near the Jews would be seen returning to their homeland after a time of being expelled from it, and that even further evidence indicating that His second coming was at hand would become manifest when the Jews would be seen taking possession of Jerusalem from the Gentiles.

This prophecy of Jesus' has been fulfilled. In 1948 the Jewish people were given a homeland and began returning to it, and this exodus continues onto this day. And since the rebirth of Israel as a nation there have been two major wars; both began by surrounding countries. When Israel was reborn as a nation, Jerusalem was still divided and partially under Syria, but then in 1967, it was recaptured in a 6 day war. In other words, in 1967 the Jews took possession of Jerusalem from the Gentiles, just as Jesus predicted. And this fulfilled prophecy of Jesus' (or end-time sign) indicates that His second coming is at hand.

In Ezekiel 38:8, a related to the mentioned above prophecy is presented. It reads: "After many days thou shall be visited: in the latter years thou shall come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them."

Were not the present-day inhabitants of Israel brought back from the sword, and are not the Jews who now inhabit Israel gathered out of many people and nations? And was not the land of waste while trodden down by the Gentiles been restored to a land of plenty and harvest after the Jews return to the land and cultivated it? And are not the inhabitance of Israel dwelling in safety? Israel has a lot of military might, and it also has very powerful allies, which keeps it safe from a major war that could destroy it.

The following excerpt about Jerusalem's history is from David Hunt's article, O Jerusalem, Jerusalem. "That Jerusalem would be 'trodden down of the Gentiles' has been a fact of history, exactly as Christ foretold. The Babylonians held Jerusalem, then the Medes and Persians. Alexander the Great took it for the Greeks in 333 B.C.. Later the Egyptians and Syrians alternately had it until the Romans under Pompey captured Israel in 64 B.C, and held it into the fourth century AD. In the seventh century Islamic invaders took control, to be replaced near the end of the eleventh century by the Crusaders. They held Jerusalem until Saladin (Sultan of Egypt and great Muslim warrior) retook the city in 1187. Later the Islamic Mamelukes of Egypt possessed Jerusalem. Then the Ottoman-Turkish Empire ruled for about 400 years. The Turks sided with Germany in World War I, so the Allied victors gave Britain a mandate in 1917 to administer the region. In 1948 the Jewish people were given a homeland and began returning to the land, an exodus from other lands that continues unto this day. There have been two major wars for Israel since their rebirth as a nation, both began by the countries around them. Until 1967 Jerusalem was divided and partially under Syria, but was recaptured in the 6 day war of 1967."

Therefore, when the "6 day war" came to an end, the times of the Gentles were fulfilled. Therefore, all Christians should know that we are in the end-times and that the Second Coming of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ is at hand.

"This generation will not pass away"

In Matthew 24:34, Jesus Christ is quoted as saying: "Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place".

What did Christ mean when He said "this generation will not pass away"? He meant that, once all the world conditions (or end-time signs) that He and other prophets predicted would occur at the end of the age had become manifest, they would not continue indefinitely. And that once the prophesied conditions became manifest, all would be fulfilled, including His Second Coming, within the lifetime of one generation."

Jesus prophesied that only one generation would be given the end-time signs described in God's Word. And that that generation's most high Christian prophets would usher out the present evil age and usher in the Kingdom of God. And because these end-time signs have become manifest in our day and age, it has therefore been revealed that the most high Christian prophets of this present generation, the youth of the 1960's counterculture generation, will usher out the present evil age and usher in the Kingdom of God.

The first condition: Man's ability to annihilate human life:

In respect to the first of these end-time signs, or end-time world conditions, Jesus told his disciples in Matthew 24:21-22: "It will be a time of great distress; there has never been such a time from the beginning of the world until now, and will never be again. If that time of trouble were not cut short, no living thing could survive; but for the sake of God's chosen it will be cut short.

Jesus warned that a time would come when mankind would see its weapons of warfare capacity grow so immense and threatening that all human life would be destroyed if a full born world war were to occur. This is what makes the time of "great distress" so terrifying, and unequaled in human history. And this end-times world condition is occurring at this present time. And considering the uncontrollable war waging history of human beings, this present-day world condition is so bad that if it were to continue for much longer "no living thing could survive".

For a very long time, man was safe from the threat of self animation. But then the situation changed. In the 1940's a number of atomic bombs were created by mankind, and the first atomic bomb was detonated in 1945. And then came the development and stockpiling of far more destructive bombs, hydrogen bombs. With thousands of nuclear weapons at his disposal, man has the ability to destroy all human life from the planet many times over. This situation never existed in history until the latter half of the 20th century. Never before did mankind have the capacity to destroy all human life. But Jesus predicted that this terrifying world condition would become manifest in the end-times, and that it would be a sign that His second coming was at hand, and that the youngest generation witnessing the birth of this terrifying world condition would live to see the fullness of the Kingdom of God established on earth.

The second condition: Israel would take possession of Jerusalem

As previously mentioned, in Luke 21:24, Jesus is quoted as saying: "And they (the Jews in Israel)...shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.". In these Bible verses, we are informed that Jesus taught His disciples that when the end of the age was near, the Jews would be seen returning to their ancient homeland after a time of being expelled from it, and that even future evidence indicating that His second coming was at hand would become manifest when Israel could be seen taking possession of Jerusalem from the Gentiles.

Once the nation of modern Israel began in 1948, it appeared its inhabitants would never control Jerusalem, and the Arab nations that surrounded her said they would never allow it. Yet in 1967, in the so-called Six-Day War, the state of Israel took possession of Jerusalem.

This world condition is a sign that we are in the end-times. Christ's prophecy has been fulfilled, with Israel in possession of Jerusalem. The times of the Gentiles' possession of Jerusalem has come to an end, as Jesus predicted. The fulfillment of this prophecy in our lifetime is like the blowing of a trumpet, warning God's people that the Second Coming of Jesus Christ is at hand and that it is time for us to prepare for His glorious second coming.

The third condition: The Revival of the Roman Empire

The third prophecy deals with the end-time revival of the Roman Empire. Daniel chapter 2 records that the ancient Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream concerning the Last Days. Daniel recounted the dream to Nebuchadnezzar, and interpreted the king's dream of a large statue by explaining the four major parts of the statue. A head of Gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of bronze and feet of iron and clay.

Many Bible scholars interpret these four parts of the statue as representing the four European continent based empires that have existed in the world's history. Daniel confirms that the first of these empires is Babylon, ruled by Nebuchadnezzar. The empires that followed Babylon were Medo-Persia and Greece. Greece was a great empire at the time of Alexander the great. And many Bible scholars believe that Daniel prophesied that the fourth empire would be a revived model of this Roman Empire.

And it is commonly believed, amongst Bible scholars, that the beginning of the fulfillment of this prophesy of Daniel's began in 1950 when the Roman Empire began to show signs of being revived. In 1950 the European Coal and Steel Community was proposed as a means of achieving economic unification in Europe following the war. The hope was that this would strengthen economic trade in Europe. This unified effort led to the signing of the treaties of Rome in 1957, which established the European Economic Community (EEC), and the European Atomic Energy Council. That treaty was taken a step further with the signing of the Brussels Treaty in 1965. The Brussels Treaty began the process of rebuilding the old Roman Empire through reunification of European states under one political system, one economic system, and eventually under the protection of one military force. The treaty established a commission, council, parliament, and court for the union. The revived Roman Empire prophesied in the Bible was well on its way to becoming a reality. More states were added to this growing union in 1973, 1981, and 1986, making up the 10 permanent member states of today's European Union. The EU today is made up of over 25 countries, however the ten nations of the Western European Alliance have a separate status as full members, while those nations who joined subsequent to the original 10 have only associate membership, or observer status. (Ref.)

Daniel revealed details of this end-times world power. He said the legs and feet of the image represented a kingdom. The image had feet and toes composed "partly of potter's clay and partly of iron." This indicated that "the kingdom shall be divided" and "partly strong and partly fragile". Also, just as iron does not mix with clay the components of this kingdom would not adhere firmly together for long (verses 41-43)." "Then, says Daniel, "...in the days of these kings (or rulers of the 10 permanent member nations of the EU) the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed . . .; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever." (verse 44).

Prophecies elsewhere in the Bible describe this fourth empire of the final days, and by studying these we can discover evidence that points to the European Union as a new world power that was prophesied to appear on the world seen just prior to the appearance of the end-time prophets who will usher in the fullness of the Kingdom of God, and in doing so, prepare the way for Jesus Christ to come and take possession of His Kingdom, a Kingdom that will have been made completely ready for Him.

The fourth condition: An evil one-world empire-building superpower-nation would appear on the world stage.

There is only one powerful nation that fits this (mention above) description, it's a nation with a sense of "God-given Christian" destiny. And it has the zeal to bring "freedom", "democracy" and "unrestricted capitalism" to the world and stand for "truth", "justice" etc.. It's a nation that promotes itself as Christian and righteous but is evil and moving toward becoming, essentially, a New Age occult nation, and it's also greatly corrupted with greedy money-loving materialistic values. It's the United States Of America. The depth of the deception in our nation has essentially blinded our nation's cultural-mainstream "Christians" to the truth about our nation being the prophetic Babylon (the end-time superpower nation) mentioned in the 18th chapter of the book of Revelation.

In Daniel 7:8, 19-21 we see the "little horn" that came out of the ten European nations that colonized the world and grew to become the dominant nation and "that horn was waging war with the saints and overpowering them." Or, in other words, "that horn" was waging a brainwashing war against Christians, leading them into moral apostasy and the Occult. Fifteen years ago a poll revealed that 23% of Americans believed in reincarnation, and now-a-days there are a lot more Americans who believe in reincarnation. Some evil aspects of the New Age occult religion have already infiltrated into the lives of many of our nation's mainline denominational "Christians". And the situation is getting worse. Note: The New Age is not all bad. There is a lot of good in it, and the good aspects of it should be incorporated into Christianity. Ref: (1.) and (2.).

Prophecies elsewhere in the Bible describe this end-time world power, and by studying these we can discover evidence that points to the United States as the new world power that was prophesied to appear on the world seen just prior to the appearance of the end-time prophets who will usher in the fullness of the Kingdom of God; and in doing so, prepare the way for Jesus Christ to come and take possession of His Kingdom, a Kingdom that will have been made completely ready for Him.

The fourth condition: A movement proclaiming that the end-times have arrived and that an elite group of Christians would conquer the world and establish the kingdom of God would become manifest in the world.

Cardinal Jean Danilou wrote a book titled: The Salvation of the Nations. And in this book of his, he stated that Jesus Christ's Second Coming would not occur until His kingdom had been made completely ready for Him, and that therefore all nations would be evangelized to the Church in the end-times. And in a best-selling book by David Hunt, Hunt wrote: "There is a growing movement within the church that is usually associated with the words kingdom, dominion, restoration, and/or reconstruction. Although similar ideas can be traced back at least to the eighteenth century, the current explosion of the kingdom/dominion emphasis began with the "Later Rain" movement, which came out of an apparent revival in Canada in 1948. It became known as The Manifest Sons of God Movement because of a teaching that an elite group of 'over-comers' manifesting immortality would conquer the world and establish the kingdom of God."

In the Spring of 1948, on the Easter weekend, special services were held at the Sharon Bible College, located in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, called the "Feast of Pentecost". Many people who had heard of the revivals in North Battleford attended these services. This led to what is considered the first "Camp Meeting" in July of 1948 which began drawing large crowds. The teachings from this revival came to be known as "Latter Rain" and quickly spread throughout Canada, United States and around the world.

The Latter Rain Movement or Manifest Sons of God Movement emphasizes a victorious eschatological outlook. This movement emphasizes the Church as overcoming and victorious in the fact that the church would come into "full stature" as taught by Apostle Paul. [Ephesians 5: 25-27] "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the church and handed himself over for her to sanctify her, cleansing her by the bath of water with the word, that he might present to himself the church in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish."

James 5:7, "Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains."

The term "Latter Rain" stems from Bible passages as Jeremiah 3:3, 5:23-25, Joel 2:23, Hosea 6:3, Zechariah 10:1, and James 5:7. In the Latter Rain Movement there is the belief that the return of speaking in tongues and the Baptism of the Holy Spirit marked the "Latter Rain" of God's Spirit, and that these were signs of the coming end of history. The outpouring of the Hole Spirit on Pentecost had been the "former rain" that established the Church, but the current "move" of the Spirit was the "latter rain" that would bring the Church's work to completion, and culminate in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, which was and is imminent.

The sixth condition: The rebirth of the first century phenomena of the baptism with the Holy Spirit.

The baptism with the Holy Spirit is a special infilling of the Holy Spirit that in our day and age has influenced the creation and promotion of the world-wide charismatic movement, a movement wherein its members receive both the baptism with the Holy Spirit as well as the related supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit.

In Ephesians 1: 14 the word of God says that the experience of the baptism with the Holy Spirit and the related manifestation of the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit is "the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession". In other words, when we receive the baptism with the Holy Spirit along with the manifestation of a supernatural gift or gifts of the Holy Spirit we experience a little heaven on earth, or the "earnest" (or foretaste) of what it is going to be like when the fullness of the Kingdom of God is established on earth. Therefore, it seems to me that it would be a very important part of God's plan to bring about the rebirth of the baptism with the Holy Spirit along with the related manifestation of the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit just prior to the Second Coming, and the reason why, is because there would then be the experience of the progression from experiencing a foretaste of Heaven on earth to the full experience of Heaven on earth.

The end-times people of God are called to put on the "full armor of God" [Ephesians 6:11]. When we are finished putting on the "full armor of God" we will have entered into the fullness of "our inheritance" [Ephesians 1:14]. We will have been allowed to sit down with Christ on His throne [Rev. 3:21], and we will have received the divine right to rule and reign over all nations and tribes. We will also have entered back into the "Garden of Eden", and we will be eating from the "Tree of Life". Our bodies will then be restored to a healthy youth like condition and shall remain in that condition until we are clothed with our bodies from Heaven.

And at the turn of the 20th century this supernatural phenomena began to occur once again. But it was not until the latter half of the 20th century that this phenomena began to occur in most of the mainline denominational Christian Churches. Therefore, I believe that this is another sign that the Second Coming is a hand.

The seventh condition: a great apostasy will be occurring

In Matthew 24: 3-5 it is recorded that Jesus' disciples asked Him: "What sign will there be of your coming, and the end of the age? And Jesus replied by saying: "See that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, saying, 'I am the Messiah' and they will deceive many." And in Matthew 24:11, Jesus is also quoted as saying: "Many false prophets will arise and deceive many". And in Matthew 24:24, Jesus is further quoted as saying: "False messiahs and false prophets will arise, and they will perform signs and wonders so great as to deceive, if that were possible, even the elect." And in 2 Thessalonians 2: 1-3, Paul warns us: "For unless the apostasy comes first, be not alarmed to the effect that the day of the Lord is at hand".

For the last 40 years we have been experiencing a large and growing worldwide movement to evangelization all of humanity into a New Age occult religion. And this movement's participants believe that this New Age occult religion will serve as the bases and principle of unity for a single united global culture wherein all of humanity will be united. This New Age occult evangelization mission began with the drug inducted 1960s' rock-and roll music ministry focused on evangelizing the world to a universal religion that would be made up of all the world's religions, a religion that would be primarily a mixture of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sufi Islam and an apostate expression of Christianity.

The term 'New Age' refers to the 'great delusion' that the Bible warned would sweep the world in the "last days".

When Pope John II was a Cardinal he wrote: "We are now standing in the face of the greatest historical confrontation humanity has gone through. I do not think that wide circles of the American society or wide circles of the Christian community realize this fully. We are now facing the final confrontation between the Church and the anti-Church, of the Gospel versus the anti-Gospel."

The eighth condition: two one thousand year "days" will have passed and the "third day" will have therefore arrived.

The church just recently became 2,000 years old. And because "a thousand years is as one day to the Lord" (2 Peter 3:8), the church is therefore just a little more than 2 "days" old. And it has therefore entered into its 3rd millennium, or 3rd "day".

When Jesus was living on this earth He was a living temple in which the new covenant operated perfectly. But they crucified Him, destroyed that temple from off the earth. When the Jews asked Jesus for a sign (John 2:18-21) Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up. Then saith the Jews, forty and six years was this temple in building, and will you rear it up in three days? But He spoke of the temple of His body."

In respect to this mentioned above scripture, Bill Britton wrote: "What Jesus is saying to them is: 'You go ahead and destroy this house that I have built for God to live in on this earth, you kill my physical body, but in three days I will raise it up.' Jesus was killed and his body was put in a tomb. And then after two days He arose from the tomb and appeared in His resurrected glorified body. But his resurrected glorified body was never established again as a temple on this earth for a habitation of God. He never went out in His resurrected body to preach the gospel or heal the sick and manifest the Father. After appearing a number of times to some 500 of His disciples over a period of 40 days, He ascended with that body into heaven."

So what temple (or body) was Jesus referring to when He said "in three days I will raise it up"? And what did He mean by the terminology "in three days"? Remember, "a thousand years is as one day to the Lord," so the "third day" is the third millennium of church history. And the temple (or body) that He is, at this time, raising up to be a habitation for God is His body on earth, the church.

The Bible says that the five fold ministry of the Church will last until the coming of the prefect man, or until every one in the Church has come to perfection. That will not occur until after the end-time "great tribulation". But for a short period of time before the coming of that many-member perfect man, there will be a first-fruits expression of that perfect man. This will occur when I, and some other members of my extended material kinship family (the Mr. and Mrs. I. C. Rainbow family) and family friends reach the realm of perfection just prior to the "great tribulation". At that time, we (or, if I do not make it to perfection, they) shall, with the blessing of the Pope, transcend and go beyond the five-fold ministry of the Catholic Church.

Years ago, there were at least two groups of Latter Rain or Manifest Sons of God churches in Anoka, Minnesota, where the badly named "Rum River" flows into the Mississippi River. And at least some of the members of one of those churches (the Shiloh House Ministries) still meet and fellowship together. I use to fellowship with all the members of the old Shiloh House Ministries, and I still occasionally fellowship with some of them during weekend serves. The Shiloh House Ministries still exist, but it is not what it use to be, however, some of its member are still of the Latter Rain Movement, including its leader. She taught, and probably still teaches, that at the putting down of alcohol "the Sons of God would appear".

I initiated and am spearheading the local (MN.), national and international movement to change the name of the Rum River. During prohibition there was a movement to change the name of the Rum River. At the time, a lot of people did not want rivers and other geographic places to have names that were advertisements for alcoholic beverages, or addictive products that are harmful to society. A very popular article of mine titled Solving the alcohol abuse epidemic indicates that I am in the prophetic forefront of the Latter Rain or Manifest Sons of God movement and that myself and members of my extended maternal family, the Mr. and Mrs. I. C. Rainbow Family, family members who I believe will soon be coming to take part in the prophetic leadership ministries of the Manifest Sons of God Movement. I am in the process of starting up a "latter Rain" or Manifests Sons of God group/church, a church that will be made up of my extended material kinship family, the I. C. Rainbow family, and family friends. I am the first full member of this beginning to form "latter Rain" church of Jesus' Rainbow Family. Therefore, I am (so far) the "I" that Jesus Christ our Lord was referring to when He said: "in the third day I (or my church) shall be perfected".

The turmoil, chaos, and pain in this present age is the result of the government of this world being in the hands of the 'prince of the power of the air', the 'ruler of darkness of this age'." But in the restoration that comes with a glorious out-pouring of the Lord's Spirit, an end-time out-pouring that brings about "the manifestation of the sons of God," the devil will be cast out of his place of authority, lose his dominion, and after a short while of rebellious behavior on earth, be bound and cast into Hell forever. This world will then see a true restoration of the earth as God intended for it to be.

At this present time Jesus is raising His church, or myself (and soon to come) also some of my I. C. Rainbow family relatives and friends) up into the realm of perfection. He is raising it up now so that God will have once again a perfect habitation to live in, as He did when Jesus lived on earth. And the church that is being called to a sinless realm of holiness, after reaching perfection, will complete its mission of ushering in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, and in doing so, establish the fullness of the Kingdom of God on earth.

Jesus said: "Go you, and tell that fox (Herod), behold, I cast out devils, and I do curse today (from the beginning of the first year of church history to the year 1,000...or, the first "day") and tomorrow (from the year 1,000 to the year 2,000...or, the second "day") and in the third day I (or my church on earth, the part of His church that is being called to usher in His Second Coming) shall be perfected." What Jesus was saying is that after the second millennium of church history a part of His church on earth would be perfected. So He is, at this time, in the third millennium of church history,...or, in the third "day", raising a part of His church up into the realm of perfection. And He is doing this in order to prepare the way for His second coming and the establishment of the fullness of His Kingdom on earth.

The ninth condition: the end of six one thousand year "days" will be drawing to an end...and, therefore, the seventh one thousand year "day", or the "seventh day" the day of the Lord will be at hand.

"Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all of His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it because that in it He had rested from all His work which He created and made. (Genesis 2:1-3)"

By Bill Britton: "God worked for 6 days bringing His creation to perfection. He was not discouraged with the imperfect, incomplete creation after the 4th or 5th day. He just kept working until it was finished."

"All of God's work was finished after six days, when He had a man prepared to take over the government of creation (Genesis 1:26-28)."

"On the seventh day God rested, while man went to work taking care of His creation."

Biblical genealogical records inform us that Adam and Eve were created almost 6,000 years ago. Orthodox Jews as well as Christian Creationists, people who literally believe in the bible account of creation and who are opposed to the theory of evolution, are the foremost believers in a literal belief in this genealogical record indicating how old the human race is. I believe that there is a reason for this genealogical record being in the Bible, but I do not believe that it should be taken literally. It was written to let us know when the seventh one thousand year day (the seventh day), or the day of the Lord, would be at hand.

According to the Bible, we have now come to the end of six of God's 1,000 year days. He has been working on His plan, and is now putting the finishing touches on it. He is now preparing some of His prophets to usher in the next 1,000 year day, the seventh day, or the day of the Lord. When these prophets reach a sinless realm of holiness, the seventh 1000 year day will have arrived, and they will then begin to rule and reign over all the earth. They will have been prepared, as was Adam, to take over the government of creation.

According to the Catholic Encyclopedia this next 1,000 year day, or the seventh day, represents eternity. It says in the Catholic Encyclopedia that Saint Augustine taught that: "...the Sabbath of one thousand years after the six thousand years of history is the whole of eternal life". Or in other words, the number one thousand is intended to express perfection, and the last space of one thousand years must be understood as referring to the end of the world."

In Rev. 20: 7-9 the word of God tells us that in the end-times Satan will be released from an abyss and then all hell is going to break loose on earth. This end-time wrath of Satan is called the "evil day" in Ephesians 6:13. And this same scripture tells us that we should "put on the full armor of God"; that we "may be able to withstand in the evil-day".

And the "evil day" just recently became imminent because the coming of God's seventh 1,000 year day just recently became imminent. And those of us who will have "put on the full armor of God" by the end of these six 1000 year days of human history will have taken dominion back from Satan and begun ruling and reigning with Jesus Christ spiritually present in our mist. At the time, we will be "at rest" in the Sabbath day, or seventh day, because, having "put on the full armor of God" we will have completely laid down our own labors, and the strength of the natural man. And in doing so, we will have enabled God to be Lord of His creation.

In the Bible these "clothed with the full armor of God" faithful followers of Christ are collectively called the "overcomer", the "man child", the one who shall rule and reign on earth with Christ. With the rising of this company of saints to the realm of perfection a warfare begins such as the world has never seen. And then after a short period of great tribulation the Second Coming will occur and then Jesus Christ will return to a dominion that has been made completely ready for Him.

The tenth condition: "Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased."

But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased. ... And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things? And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. -- Daniel 12:4-9

Our modern-day transportation system enables us to "run to and fro" like never before. And with the recent introduction of the internet, knowledge has increased like never before.

The eleventh condition - The manifestation of a large and growing movement with a mission to create a world wherein there is a lot more kindness toward animals.

Jesus Christ shall establish an everlasting reign of peace on earth, even the animals that kill other animals for food shall cease to do so to obtain food for nourishment "for behold, the wolf and the lamb shall graze together (Isaiah 65:25)...and the animals that are at enmity with man shall cease to be so... for behold, the baby shall play by the cobra's den, and the child lay his hand on the adder's lair (Isaiah 11: 8)... and all God's creatures shall be at rest. ..." Now-a-days, more and more people are beginning to understand that killing animals for food is a violent act and unnecessary. And many are therefore becoming vegetarians. This growing movement is a sign that Christ's glorious everlasting reign of peace, wherein mankind and God's creatures shall be at rest, is near at hand.

John 3:1-18 - This passage includes Jesus' well-known saying, "For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him." I think this passage offers several insights relevant to those who (with strong Biblical support) believe that we as Christians are called to be responsible stewards of God's Creation.

This verse points us away from the notion that God is focused on meting out harsh punishment for sin and points us toward a notion of a loving God loves who cares about creation. Significantly, the Son is sent to save "the world," not just humanity. The world includes God's creatures and God's good earth, and this verse argues strongly against the human-centered, self-serving worldview articulated by many Christian leaders.

The world has always needed salvation, because outside the Garden of Eden there is pain, suffering, and death. God's assistance will be necessary before there can be an age when "death shall be no more" (Revelation 21:4), but it seems that our help is needed for this to happen. The need for salvation of the earth has never been greater than now, because of the growing environmental crisis that threatens great harm to God�s Creation.

The twelfth condition - an increase of Marian apparitions

Time Magazine reports there have been so many sightings of the "Virgin Mary" around the world that "the late 20th century has become the age of Marian pilgrimage" to many shrines established to commemorate these appearances.

The Blessed Virgin Mary was the vessel that brought Jesus into the world the first time. And she is now heralding His second coming.

With mankind possessing the capacity to destroy all human life in several ways, with Israel in control of Jerusalem, with a unified Europe (or revived Roman Empire), with a movement proclaiming that the end-times have arrived and that an elite group of Christians would conquer the world and establish the kingdom of God, with the rebirth of the baptism with the Holy Spirit and companied manifestation of the supernatural gifts of the Spirit, with a great apostasy occurring, with the "third day's" arrival, with the "seventh day" at hand, with people running to and foe and knowledge increasing, with a large and growing movement to create a world wherein there is a lot more kindness toward animals and with an increase of Marian apparitions we do well to heed the warnings of biblical prophecy and not ignore these end-time signs, or world conditions, that mark the end-time.

"The government shall be upon his shoulder"

According to Catholic doctrine, Jesus Christ's kingdom will have to be made completely ready for Him, before He will appear to rule and reign on earth. Therefore, a one world Catholic monarchial system will have to be established and perfected before Jesus Christ will come to take over His kingdom.

Cardinal Jean Danielou, wrote the following statement in his book, "The Salvation of the Nations". "Theology will be complete the day evangelization comes to an end, the day all nations know Christ, the day the entire world has heard the Gospel, the day Christ can come to take possession of a domain that will have been made completely ready for Him, and when all nations will each in turn have borne testimony to Him."

"Salvation is come to the Gentiles, that they may be emulous of them. Now, is the offence of them be the riches of the world, and the diminution of them, the riches of the Gentiles; how much more the fullness of them?" (Romans XI, 13-15)

"This extraordinary text suggests that the plenitude of the Jewish people's vocation will become manifest only at the end of time. "For I say to you, Gentiles: as long indeed as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I will honor my ministry. If, by any mans, I may provoke to emulation them who are my flesh and may save some of them. For if the loss of them be the reconciliation of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?" (Romans XI, 11-12) Thus, there is a relationship between the reintegration of the Jews and the resurrection of the dead, that is, the Second Coming, the end of the world. And Saint Paul continues: "...blindness in part has happened in Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles should come in. And so all Israel should be saved, as it is written: There shall come out of Sion, he that shall deliver." (Romans XI, 25 - 26)

"Therefore Saint Paul knew that the salvation of Israel, of his brothers whom he loved passionately, was linked to the conversion of the Gentiles. Many consequences flowed from this. Here was a second reason why the conversion of the Gentiles appeared to be so urgent in his eyes: he knew that the Jews would be saved only after the mass of the Gentiles had been gathered in. This was one of the great mysteries of His Revelation that the Lord had made known to him.

" We know that the Jews will not be converted as a people before the mass of the Gentiles have entered the fold. The obstacle to the conversion of the Jews is precisely the fact that the work of evangelizing is not yet completed. It is only when all the peoples of the world hav

by Thomas Dahlheimer

Tony Castanha -a Jibaro activist with indigenous roots in Puerto Rico, who was the project director for the indigenous peoples delegation that went to the Vatican in 2000 calling for the revocation of the 1493 papal bull "Inter Caetera", recently contacted me to give his approval and support for my indigenous peoples rights activist initiative associated with my youtube video wherein I tear up a copy of the Papal Bull "Inter Caetera" in front of Anoka, Minnesota's Roman Catholic Church, the Church of Saint Stephen, located in the Dakota-Lakota-Nakota Indian's traditional/ancestral homeland.

Papal Bull "Inter Caetera" is a decree that was issued by Pope Alexander IV to Christopher Columbus by the Roman Catholic Church on his second voyage to the Americas along with the 1494 Treaty of Tordesillas, which sought to establish Christian dominion over the world and called for the subjugation of non-Christian peoples and seizure of their lands. The decree, which granted rights to land throughout North and South America to Spain, under girds much of international law today, as well as the Doctrine of Discovery that is enshrined in US federal Indian policy.

In 1999, Steven Newcomb, co-director for the Indigenous Law Institute, attended the National Catholic Gathering for Jubilee Justice, at the UCLA campus. A committee of Catholic laity drafted a petition titled, “National Catholic Gathering for Jubilee Justice: A Call for the Revocation of the Inter Caetera Bull.” The petition called upon Pope John Paul II to revoke the Inter Caetera papal bull of 1493. It was hand delivered along with Newcomb’s pamphlet “Pagans in the Promised Land” to Cardinal Mahony of the Archdiocese in Los Angeles, and to Cardinal Roger Etchegaray, Pope John Paul’s personal emissary to the Jubilee event.

Also, in 1999, Tony Castanha was invited to be on a panel at the Hague Appeal for Peace in the Netherlands to discuss the papal bulls. He drafted an essay for the occasion entitled, “Christian Universalism and the Movement to Revoke the Papal Bulls.” Nalani Minton (Kanaka Maoli - Hawai'i) and Steven Newcomb drafted “The Pu’uhonua Peace Pact” that, among other things, asks the world community to call for the revocation of the papal bull of 1493.

In 2000, a letter to the Prefecture of the Papal Household and to the Most Reverent Eminence Re is co-written by Bishop Francis X. DiLorenzo, Diocese of Honululu, and Tony Castanha, Project Director for the Matsunaga Institute for Peace – requesting a private audience with Pope John Paul II on Wednesday 11 October 2000.

Also, Steven Newcomb contacted me to thank me for my Indigenous Peoples Literature article Restoring the fundamental human rights of Indigenous Peoples.

 source reference link  

My letter from the PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR JUSTICE AND PEACE is located at http://www.towahkon.org/Vatican.html

On September 17, 2008 - the editor of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota Nation's on-line newspaper published the following "Letter to the Oyate" of mine. This Dakota nation is a 12,000 member nation. A link to my article "Dakota Creation Stories" was published with the letter.

NOTE:  Griff Wigley, Project Leader, Minnesota Sesquicentennial Advisory Committee for Native American Partnering (SACNAP), is mentioned in this letter. He did not like this letter and wrote on SACNAP, in response to this letter and a comment of mine on SACNAP:  " As I said to you that day at Coldwater, it doesn't matter to me right now whether there are one, two, or many Dakota creation stories. Everyone agrees about the importance/sacredness of the B'dote and Coldwater areas. That's all that matters, so leave it at that."

The truth is, it is NOT "all that matters", it is very important that the importance that the Dakota place on their Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) traditional/ancestral homeland is not being demeaned, AT ANY TIME, and that the Dakota's Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) creation story is not being denied, AT ANY TIME, by Dakota activists or any one else for political gain. 

Check out my article The Coldwater Spring Deception for more information on this topic.

Letter to the Oyate

Greetings from the small town of Wahkon, Minnesota. I initiated and am spearheading the movement to change the name of Minnesota’s Rum River back to its sacred Dakota name, Wakan. On September 5th, I participated in a Dakota gathering at the sacred Coldwater Springs site. Where a small group of Dakota activists launched the reclamation of this sacred site. Jim Anderson, an organizer of the event, and I met at the gathering and had a good conversation. But unfortunately, during Chris Mato Nunpa’s press conference presentation, Mato Nunpa made a bold faced lie. He said the "Sesquicentennial Commission will not admit genocide." (ref.)

During the gathering, I asked Griff Wigley, Project Leader for the Sesquicentennial Advisory Committee for Native American Partnering, if he heard what Mato Nunpa said about the Sesquicentennial Commission. Wigley said that he did and that it was Mato Nunpa's "speed" and that it made his presentation "sound good". I then told Wigley that Mato Nunpa has also been lying to hurt me and my work. A few months ago, the Sesquicentennial Commission admitted that Minnesota committed a genocide against the Dakota people during its early history. (ref.)

I believe that Mato Nunpa lies and distorts the Dakota people’s history in Minnesota in order to gain leverage to accomplish his and Jim Anderson’s activist goals in the Mendota area. Anderson is the historian for the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community. A few months ago, after showing Mato Nunpa evidence of what I believe he is doing, he became very angry with me and insulted me as well as told Jim Anderson to quit working with me, and do so, because I believe and publicly teach (in contradiction to what he teaches) that there are not only two Mendota area Dakota creation stories, but also a Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation story.

Leonard Wabasha, a Mdewakanton Dakota hereditary chief, has publicly acknowledged that there is a Mille Lacs Lake Dakota creation story. (ref.)

And Wilhelm Meya, an anthropologists who works with the Lakota, wrote: “The sacred lake (Mille Lacs) figures prominently in Lakota/Dakota creation stories. The lake is considered sacred because the Dakota people emerged from it as human beings into this world. You may want to look up the story itself in some of the Dakota mythology collections." (ref.)

By denying that there is a Mille Lacs Lake Dakota creation story, I believe that Mato Nunpa is demeaning the importance that the Dakota people attribute to their Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral homeland.

Not long ago, Anderson told the mayor of Anoka that the Mille Lacs Lake Dakota creation story is “one” of the Dakota’s creation stories. However, because of Mato Nunpa, Anderson no longer works with me, nor does he publicly tell people that there is a Mille Lacs Lake Dakota creation story.

Mato Nunpa’s lies are hindering me from accomplishing the goals that the Great Spirit has given me to accomplish in the Dakota’s sacred Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral/traditional homeland.

More about this topic can be found at: http://www.care2.com/c2c/share/detail/875739

Thomas Dahlheimer Director of Rum River Name Change Organization.

I initiated and am spearheading the local, national and international movement to change the faulty-translation and profane name of Minnesota’s Rum River back to its sacred Dakota name, Wakan.

I recently participated in a Dakota gathering at the sacred Coldwater Springs site. Where a small group of Dakota activists launched the reclamation of this sacred site with four days of ceremonies to celebrate the seasonal transition from summer to fall.

During the gathering, Jim Anderson, the historian for the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community, and I met and had a good conversation. But unfortunately, during Chris Mato Nunpa’s press conference presentation, Mato Nunpa, a Dakota activist as well as an organizer of this event, made a bold faced lie. He said: "the Sesquicentennial Commission will not admit genocide".

Griff Wigley, Project Leader for the Sesquicentennial Advisory Committee for Native American Partnering, was at the gathering. We met and had a conversation. I asked him if he heard what Mato Nunpa said about the Sesquicentennial Commission. He said that he did and that it was Mato Nunpa's "speed" and that it made his presentation "sound good". (It "sounded good" but was not the truth) I then told Griff that Mato Nunpa has also been lying to hurt me and my work. A few months ago, the Sesquicentennial Commission admitted that Minnesota committed a genocide against the Dakota people during its early history.

Check out my article TheColdwater Spring Deception  for more information about this topic.

I believe that Mato Nunpa lies and distorts the Dakota people’s history in Minnesota in order to make his work in the Mendota area seem more important than it is. A few months ago, after showing Mato Nunpa evidence of what I believe he is doing, he became very angry with me and insulted me as well as told Jim Anderson to quit working with me. And Jim did what Mato Nunpa asked him to do, he quit working with me.

On a regular basis, Jim and I had been meeting with the mayor of Anoka. And I had set things up for Jim and other members of the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community to meet with the Anoka Human Rights Commission. And I had spoken with the mayor of Cambridge, Minnesota and she had scheduled Jim and I to address the Cambridge City Council. And I had set things up for Jim to address the Anoka-Hennepin School District Indian Education Parent Committee and staff, etc. And this all came to an erupt and rude end because of Mato Nunpa’s influence over the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community historian, Jim Anderson. Mato Nunpa draws in internationally renowned Native activists to give support for his and Jim Anderson’s activist initiative in the Mendoa area.

It seems to me that Mato Nunpa has a serious problem and that he is hurting the Dakota people. I recently sent a letter to the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community wherein I wrote that it was my wish that all of the members of the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community would become aware of this problem and do something to solve it.

The information presented throughout the rest of this blog is about Mato Nunpa’s lies that distort the true history of the Dakota people. Mato Nunpa ignores and demeans the importance that the Dakota attribute to their sacred Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral/traditional homeland, and he also over emphasizes the importance of the Mendota area to the Dakota people. And by doing so, he makes his work in the Mendota area look more important than it is.

On a Mille Lacs Kathio State Park interpretive sign, Leonard E. Wabasha is quoted as saying: "My people are the Mdewakanton Oyate. Mdewakanton means the People of Spirit Lake. Today that lake is known as Mille Lacs. This landscape is sacred to the Mdewakanton Oyate because one Otokaheys Woyakapi (creation story) says we were created here. It is especially pleasing for me to come here and walk these trails, because about 1718 the first Chief Wapahasa was born here, at the headwaters of the Spirit River. I am the eighth in this line of hereditary chiefs." (ref.)

During a three-day Dakota conference at Marshall, Minnesota’s Southwest Minnesota State University, a conference that addressed the history of the European colonists and Euro-American’s extreme mistreatment of the Dakota people, Angela Wilson and her father, Chris Mato Nunpa, told the conference participates that according to the (singular) Dakota creation story, the place referred to as Bdote (called Mendota in English), is the site where the Dakota people were created.

I knew that Wilson had read my article Regaining The Dakota’s Mille Lacs Ancestral Homeland and therefore knew that there is another Dakota creation story that says Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) is the site where the Dakota people were created. And when I asked Mato Nunpa why he and his daughter, Angela Wilson, were teaching that there is only one site where the Dakota people believe they were created, and that that site is Mendota, Mato Nunpa wrote: “People like you quote Leonard Wabasha”. By denying that there is a Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation story, Mato Nunpa and Wilson demean the importance that the Dakota people attribute to their Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) ancestral/traditional homeland.

When I was corresponding with Mato Nunpa, he sent me a message wherein he wrote that he was going to tell Jim Anderson to quit working with me. And do so, because I believe and publicly teach (in contradiction to what he and his daughter teach) that there is a Mde Wakan (Mille Lacs Lake) Dakota creation story. After Jim was told by Mato Nunpa to quit working with me, Jim quit working with me.

The following letter was published in the Mille Lacs Messenger.

 by Thomas Dahlheimer

In an Isanti County News article about a 2008 Wakan Wakpa (Rum River) Canoe Expedition that provided a group of inner-city Dakota boys from Minneapolis and St. Paul an opportunity to paddle the natural artery of their ancestors there are the following statements:

“Their 165-mile paddle—from Mille Lacs Lake to Minneapolis—commemorated many important aspects of Dakota history and culture. The expedition departed from the Mille Lacs headwaters the morning of Tuesday, June 24, with the group getting 32 miles behind them that day. Unfortunately, the low water forced the canoeists to walk over several stretches.”

“The Rum, known for centuries as Wakan Wakpa (Holy River), is an important spiritual and cultural artery to the Dakota who, until 1745, lived at Mille Lacs (Mde Wakan) and considered it the center of their world.”

Healthy Nations, an Eliminating Health Disparities grantee agency of the Minnesota Department of Health, sponsored the expedition.

“These young people are taking the initiative to scout the length of the river in order for their tribe to become familiar with it, and in so doing, reclaim their tribal legacy,” says LeMoine LaPointe, director of the Healthy Nations Program at the Minneapolis American Indian Center.

LaPointe says reclaiming the Rum River is important to the health of the Dakota community.

“Over thousands of years of repeated use of that river Indian people saw something there that was good for them, and infused that into their physical and spiritual health. Knowing and interacting with that river had an enormous positive impact on them.”

LaPointe says it’s also important to the health of Native American people that the river be called by its original name.

“Rum is a pollutant, a destructive chemical. It’s not a poison river, it’s a holy river,” he said. “That river has contributed to the development of successful tribal communities for thousands of years. Recognizing it as Wakan Wakpa, Holy River, reattaches a positive connotation that will be felt in mind, body and spirit in many different ways.”

I am thinking that my movement to change the name of the Rum River back to its sacred Dakota name as well as my online articles about my many Dakota rights activists initiative in the Mille Lacs area, including my article Regaining the Dakota’s Mille Lacs ancestral homeland, were influential in respect to the initiation of the Dakota’s original idea and planning behind the reclaiming the Rum River sacred Dakota expedition on the Wakpa Wakan.