At the beginning of European contact with the Western Hemisphere in the 16th century, there were literally hundreds of small-scale traditional or tribal religions throughout the Americas. At the core of many of those religions were expressions of the creative power as a goddess who grew from the power of women and the feminine. Many new religious movements among Native Americans over the centuries of contact grew from both Native traditions and unique interpretations of Christian teachings, which also focused on the role of women in bringing God or the gods to life on Earth.

By the start of the 20th century, many tribal religions, especially in North America, had diminished or disappeared due to violence, disease, missionization, and a systematic persecution of Native American ...