Black Elk was born into a tribe of the Plains Indians, the Ogallala Lakota. He had
five sisters and one brother. He had many children, but his daughter, Lucy Looks Twice,
is the one discussed in this essay. The Lakota were hunters, and they relied mainly on the
buffalo. Buffalo was their main source for not only food but, also shelter and clothing.
The Lakota lived throughout the midwestern plains of North America, until they were put
on the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota. Black Elk took part in many historical
events, like the Battle of Little Big Horn. As an adult Black Elk became a medicine man
and a prominent member of his tribe.
His religion was very important to him. Lucy Looks Twice recalls that her father
had suffered a lot, and had experienced inner confusion. Black Elk knew that something was wrong in his life because he suffered socially, physically, and psychologically. Black Elk soon had to visit the hospital due to ulcers. While there he received the holy sacrament, and never suffered from his ulcers again. This instance, and with the encouragement of his friend, Kills Brave, Black Elk converted to Catholicism.
On December 6th, 1904 he was converted by a priest to the Catholic faith. When he was baptized on the Feast of Saint Nicholas, Black Elk was given the Christian name, Nicholas Black Elk. As a member of the Society of St. Joseph, he helped sponsor the annual Catholic Sioux Congress and was active in converting others to Catholicism, and he gave up his medicine forever. Though he was a confirmed Catholic his Lakota
spirituality remained strong throughout his life. (americanwriters).
Nicholas Elk Black was part of the underground traditional religious movement,
that began shortly after the U.S. government banned native religious practices. These
underground activities became a vital part of his life, as
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