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R. Voss

Indigenous healing practice: Opening a discussion

June 7, 2014 / Ayahuasca, Papers, Publications / By / ,

Abstract

The authors examine and discuss the indigenous healing practice using Ayahuasca, an entheogen, which a concoction of plants and bark that induces a “vision state”. This shamanic healing ceremony is used today among indigenous peoples of South America and Southwest of the United States. The authors examine the phenomena of shamanism and the historic suppresion of such practices by missionaries, codified into law in the U.S. (Indian Offenses Act). Despite these efforts to suppress such ceremonies, they persist even today and are viewed as an alternative or complement to western practices that often fail to address the persisting problems many indigenous peoples face. The authors cite the National Catholic Bishops Pastoral Letter, Heritage and Hope: Evangelization in the United States (1991) as an invitation for dialogue to examine the question, “Is there room in pastoral counseling for shamanism?” This paper hopes to open a dialogue between pastoral counselors and traditional indigenous practitioners well aware of the sensitive nature of such an endeavor. At best our intention is to make pastoral care and counseling professionals aware of such practices common in indigenous communities.
Prue, R., & Voss, R. W. (2014). Indigenous healing practice: Opening a discussion. Journal of Pastoral Care & Counseling, 68(1).
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Indigenous healing practice: ayahuasca. Opening a discussion

March 1, 2014 / Ayahuasca, Papers, Psychology, Publications, Substance Use Disorder / By / ,

Abstract

This essay frames an invitation to pastoral counselors and pastoral theologians to examine connections and perhaps interactions between themselves and traditional shamanic healers who use ayahuasca in their healing ceremonies. Indigenous people in South America have used ayahuasca for centuries, and the ritual has become common among the mestizo populations in urban areas of the Amazon, particularly as a curing ritual for drug addiction (Dobkin de Rios, 1970; Moir, 1998). Like peyote in the United States (Calabrese, 1997) ayahuasca use amongst the indigenous people of the Amazon is a form of cultural psychiatry. A review of the literature reveals very little commentary or discussion of shamanic practice in Pastoral Counseling (Pastoral Theology). The scant literature identifies an antithetical relationship at best. The current authors wonder about the possibility of to including shamanic practices in the context of pastoral counseling? This essay seeks to provide some basic information about the ritual use of ayahuasca and to offer a rationale for pastoral counselors to engage in a dialogue about its utility.

Prue, R., & Voss, R. W. (2014). Indigenous healing practice: ayahuasca. Opening a discussion. Journal of Pastoral Care & Counseling, 68(1), 1-13. 10.1177/154230501406800106
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