Our Grandmother of the Shawnee: Messages of a Female Deity.

Principles of narrative analysis provide the foundation for a study of messages from the Shawnee female deity. The Shawnee hold a unique theological conception of their Creator, a female deity known as "Our Grandmother." The purpose of this study is to investigate the origin and nature of the Shawnee female deity and reveal mediums of communication She has used to communicate with Her Shawnee people. This study provides an overview of Shawnee narratives, folklore, and spiritual beliefs. A major goal of this paper is to investigate Her unique messages to the Shawnee and the powerful impact Her words have had on Shawnee culture. The paper demonstrates the Shawnee female deity, "Our Grandmother," had four separate, discernible message revelation techniques for chosen Shawnee individuals and four general message revelation techniques for Her grandchildren, the Shawnee people. (Contains 22 references.) (Author/RS)