What does it mean to be a white settler on land taken from peoples who have lived there since time immemorial? In the context of reconciliation and Indigenous resurgence, Unsettling Spirit provides a personal perspective on decolonization, informed by Indigenous traditions and lifeways, and the need to examine one’s complicity with colonial structures.
Applying autoethnography grounded in Indigenous and feminist methodologies, Denise Nadeau weaves together stories and reflections on how to live with integrity on stolen and occupied land. The author chronicles her early and brief experience of “Native mission” in the late 1980s and early 1990s in northern Canada and Chiapas, Mexico, and the gradual recognition that she had internalized colonialist concepts of the “good Christian” and the Great White Helper. Drawing on somatic psychotherapy, Nadeau addresses contemporary manifestations of helping and the politics of trauma. She uncovers her ancestors’ settler background and the responsibilities that come with facing this history. Caught between two traditions, born and raised Catholic but challenged by Indigenous ways of life, the author traces her engagement with Indigenous values and how relationships inform her ongoing journey. A foreword by Cree-Métis author Deanna Reder places the work in a broader context of Indigenous scholarship.
Incorporating insights from Indigenous ethical and legal frameworks, Unsettling Spirit offers an accessible reflection on possibilities for settler decolonization as well as for decolonizing Christian and interfaith practice.
Canadian Society for the Study of Religion
2021 Book prize
“Unsettling Spirit is is very relevant to the study of religion and quite timely.This book is a thought-provoking exploration into the settler experience and working towards being an ally of decolonization. It is a reminder of the importance of situating oneself and fostering self-awareness when studying communities and ways of life. Throughout the book, Nadeau highlights Indigenous knowledge systems and worldviews, helping the reader understand how settler knowledge constructions and their practical manifestations are real barriers to Indigenous progress and self-determination. The author turns a spiritual quest into a dialogue deconstructing settler identities. It is a study looking inward to meaningfully engage with decolonization.”Unsettling Spirit is is very relevant to the study of religion and quite timely.This book is a thought-provoking exploration into the settler experience and working towards being an ally of decolonization. It is a reminder of the importance of situating oneself and fostering self-awareness when studying communities and ways of life. Throughout the book, Nadeau highlights Indigenous knowledge systems and worldviews, helping the reader understand how settler knowledge constructions and their practical manifestations are real barriers to Indigenous progress and self-determination. The author turns a spiritual quest into a dialogue deconstructing settler identities. It is a study looking inward to meaningfully engage with decolonization.”
Denise Nadeau 