Culture clash can be positive or negative, as we've seen through studying interactions between Natives and settlers. More advanced medicines are usually good. Cultural genocide, not so much. But what about religion? From what I have seen in the writings for class, it seems that the interaction between Native religions and Christianity has been nearly universally negative. In Chapter 12 of A Will to Survive, the first author gives her account of growing up and being introduced to Catholicism with her tribe. She gives typical Catholic horror stories of judgmental priests, harsh nuns, and threats of hellfire. On several occasions, she sees people coming out of confessional booths crying, or hears the priests on the other side of the confessional shouting at people taking part in confession.
I may be a little biased, not being a fan of religions in general, but I can't envision a situation where trying to replace someone else's religion or introduce organized religion to people who are not familiar with it would be a good thing. It's just plain presumptuous to think that others are not as serious in their religion, or lack thereof, as you are. However, this is exactly how the missionaries to the Natives thought. They believed they were introducing the Natives to a more 'civilized' religion (yes, because burning people at the stake, burning books, burning down houses, burning...a lot of stuff...in the name of God is really civilized). Not that the Native religions didn't have their violence (especially against animals), but at least they were respectful about it. They didn't have the top down, binary-infused mess of a religion that many white people did and do. They had religions that gave respect to all living things and didn't impose strict, arbitrary moralities and systems on followers.
Essentially, no religion is really better than any other (get my double meaning? Haha, I'm sorry, that was a little rude). There is nothing that makes Catholicism better than a local, tribal religion, and nothing that makes the local religion better than Islam, or Judaism, and vice versa. If people started realizing this, we would live in a much better world.
Hadley, I totally agree with this whole post. Then again, I may be biased growing up Catholic and living to resent the fact that I was forced into the belief system. I really like the way that our class universally agrees that Native religion was no less of a religion than any other "organized" religion. It's nice to be on the same page with so many people, in many circles I feel too opinionated for my own good; through this class I was refreshed to see that I am never accused of being "too liberal" or "not religious" or "anti-Catholic". I think your post brought up a lot of really valid points that I appreciate.
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