By Lloyd Mackey

WHEN a song entitled ‘God came to Earth to give Life’ is sung at a Maa-Nulth nation potlatch near Campbell River, is it a creation of a First Nation’s family or an expression of the Christian faith?

The answer to that question is ‘both/and’ according to Jim Miller, who, with his wife, Kristy, comes alongside First Nations Christian families, to help them write songs that tell their stories and their faith in a way that reflects their own culture.

They work with NAIM (North American Indigenous Ministries), a long-established Christian group known for its work with indigenous peoples.

The couple have been involved in helping First Nations believers express their faith for over two decades. NAIM supporters may recognize the names of Bill and Sandy Lottis. They were long time NAIM workers – and Kristy’s parents.

But the Millers recognize, as well, that this is the 21st century, which includes, among other things, the signing of the first treaties between British Columbia First Nations groups and Canadian governments.

B. C. was among the last of the provinces to enter into the treaty process.

The name for the activity through which the Millers exercise their ministry is ‘ethnomusicology,’ which they first learned at Northwestern College in Minnesota through a professor named David Osterland.

Osterland went on to develop ethnomusicology programs, in due course, in Biola and Columbia International Universities, major American evangelical institutions which have been committed, in recent years, to helping indigenous or aboriginal Christian believers to use their own music and culture to communicate their particular faith and values.

On Vancouver Island, the Millers have been working with a First Nations team, to develop Songs to the Creator.

According to the mission statement on their website, Songs to the Creator “exists to encourage the First Nations church in indigenous expression.”

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On the ground, that means coming alongside elders who are Christian, to help them lead families to create their own songs, that reflect their values and faith.

The example mentioned above – of the ‘God came to earth’ song being a part of a potlatch – is the end result of that effort.

Jim Miller points out that “the songs and dances are owned by the family.”

It is important, he says, to work with the concept that “what is acceptable to God is what is in the heart.”

He is careful about commenting on the mental adjustment to culture, on the part of Caucasian people working with First Nations elders and families.

Christian developers of the ethnomusicology concepts have worked with the limitation that one should be careful about “messing with the culture.” The objective, Miller suggests, is to help Christian First Nations believers to be aware that their faith “is not a foreign white thing.”

Biblically, the apostle Paul’s analogy that the introduction of gospel content that could be acceptable in both Jewish and various Gentile cultures is worth careful study and understanding.

Such care helps to avoid a polarizing of the Christian community on these issues, he suggests.

The Maa-Nulth nation, with which the Millers work, has formed the second treaty in British Columbia. It consists of five major bands, many of whose members were a part of what had traditionally been known as the Nootkas.

Nootka Sound, on the west coast of Vancouver Island was the location of many of their villages. So how can the Millers, living on the east coast of the Island, in Campbell River, relate to this group?

Campbell River is a major gravitational point for many of the Maa-Nulth, because their west coast villages are quite isolated in terms of road access. Many of their potlatches take place on First Nations lands close to Campbell River.

Contact: songstothecreator.com.

February 2008