Customer Reviews

The Give-Away: A Christmas Story in the Native American Tradition

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I became aware of this book yesterday when I heard Ray Buckley read it at a Christmas Tea & Tree for the Red Bird Missionary Conference. The book touched the hearts of each of those present. Small children, youth and adults were warmed with the story.

The Give-Away is for all families, with children and without. It would be an excellent resource to give to families that do not attend church.

Ray re-presents God's story of love and self-giving by sharing from his tradition the story of giving.

Both the illustrations and the story are wonderful. The book artfully combines Native American spirituality aspects with Christian aspects. I used this book in a "children's church" class at our Native American / Catholic church at Christmas. The kids loved the story and afterwards made a collage of Jesus in the manager surrounded by all the animals mentioned in the story. The book could be used during Easter as well or during a discussion about Native American give-aways.

The best book I have ever read regarding the birth of Christ from an aboriginal viewpoint. Those in the pulpit need to move over and make room.

The Give-Away is beautifully written and illustrated. Mr. Buckley's story is simply the story of Christmas, based on the tradition shared by many Native people known as 'the give-away." A friend recommended this book and I share that recommendation with you. The Native people have much to teach in their tradition of the give-away.

This Christmas picture book is a powerful telling of God's plan for the birth of Jesus. The story is told as a folktale and based on the Native American tradition of give-aways. In this story, the oldest and wisest of every walking and flying animal gather in the oldest forest to to discuss the state of humanity. They recognize how humans have forgotten their connections with God, each other, the animals, and the Earth. Then, the wise turtle proclaims that she will give of herself - her shell - and in her giving, she hopes that humans will be reminded of who they are in connection with all creation. The other animals follow her lead and offer to give the "most costly portion of themselves."

But then, God, called "the Creator," appears and warns the animals that the humans will not know that the animals have given these gifts. Instead, the humans will believe that they have taken from creation as demonstration of their power. The Creator offers the solution: He must give himself away. The Creator says, "I must choose to become small, so that they can choose to know me large." The Creator then explains that he will come to Earth as a baby bringing light, hope, and love. The story really shows its power at the end when the oldest tree asks how it can give to this baby, and the Creator answers that the tree will be his support and place of rest at the beginning and the end. The final page reads that the oldest tree wept, "partly for joy and partly for sorrow," as many of us may feel at the news of Jesus' birth and death.

This story gives some insight into the purpose of Jesus' life - to reconnect humanity to God and all of his creation. It shows how all of creation supports each other and God designed us to work in harmony together. It also depicts Jesus as God's gift to us and communicates the greatness of His sacrifice. The ultimate themes are giving and connection, two beautiful and important lessons for children and adults.

Buckley is a Native American and has worked for good relations with the Native American community and the United Methodist Church in many capacities including interim Director of the Center for Native American Spirituality and Christian Study. There are strong Native American elements in this story that deftly combine the emphasis on the oneness of creation with the reverence for God and Jesus. As Buckley explains in the introduction, the animals are illustrated with red on their faces as a sign of hospitality and friendliness. The story itself is based on the Native American tradition of giving away possessions or sacrificing oneself for the community. Children in mixed and Native American communities will learn a great deal about the relationship between Native American spirituality and Christianity.

Consider reading or performing The Give-Away along with a giving event during the Christmas season. The message of the story is for all and would be a great addition to a family or intergenerational event.

This is one of the most beautiful stories I think I have ever read. Even if you are not a Christian, It tells a story of giving to and caring for others and our planet. A lesson we all need to be teaching our children especially in this time. The story is told so beautifully and not from a preachy perspective but from the animals perspective. The illustrations are oustanding. Even though it is not a true Native American story, being Native American it really touched my heart and my belief system in the earth and all of her creatures. But mostly of our responsibility to take care of her and each other. A must read and a book every family should own. I am a children's yoga teacher and I also use this book to teach the animal poses as well as environmental lessons about the web of life and our part in it. It has been a great story to use for this purpose especially around the holidays.

I bought this book for my sons because I wanted something that wove their Native American culture in with the traditional European American Christmas. The story was beautiful and I found myself with tears in my eyes when I would read it too my boys. It is a sweet story about sacrifice and devotion.

Wonderful combination of christian & earth-centered storytelling. Not dumbed-down for children, yet totally accessible. Lovely artwork. Inspires dialogue with readers on what we have to "give-away."

Written by a Lakota/Tlingit/Scots author, this story introduces the Incarnation of Jesus, beginning from the animistic worldview of many tribal peoples. The illustrations in Buckley's books feature recognizable artistic motifs from pan-tribal Native American culture to produce an effect that is strikingly beautiful.

In the opening scene, the animals hold a counsel under a Great Tree in which they lament the fallenness of humanity. Each animal offers a gift to help the humans learn to do what is right; then the Creator speaks, promising the gift of Himself as a small baby who will bring hope to the world.

Scripture teaches that the creation does serve as a testimony to the character of God:

19For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. (Romans 1:19-20a)

This story takes the creation's testimony a step further by giving animals and trees personhood and volition. This anthropomorphism is troubling for biblical Christians because in traditional tribal religion, animals and plants are viewed as having spirits of their own, similar to those of humans. Animals are often referred to as "relatives" of people, and the idea of humans ruling over the world as the crown of God's creation is usually rejected.

Still, in the biblical tradition it is obvious that humanity's fall into sin has caused other created beings to suffer under our choices, although they are innocent of our rebellion:

19For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. (Romans 8:19-21).

Additionally, the concept of animals making sacrifices on behalf of humanity is played out in covenantal history, from the time God killed animals to make clothing for Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:21) through the Hebrew tradition of sacrifice (See Genesis 4:3-4, Genesis 8:20, Genesis 46:1, Job 1:5, and many others). Animal death was necessary because "without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins" (Hebrews 9:22). In the Jewish religious tradition, this principle kept the Children of Israel in the fellowship and fear of God until Jesus, the Lamb of God, came to fulfill the law, die as the final sacrifice for sin, and restore humanity to Himself.

What Buckley is attempting in this story is to portray an animistic religious teaching, and then show how it is completed through Christ. Don Richardson describes this as a cultural key -- an element of culture which can be used to unlock a door for the Gospel (The most famous example of this is probably the Apostle Paul speaking on Mars Hill). The cultural traditional belief poses a question which can only be answered by Jesus. In this case, the animals are depicted as attempting to influence humans by their actions, but it is clear their plan will not be effective. The Creator counters their plan by stating that their gifts are incomplete, and the only answer to human sin is the gift of Himself: "It is I who must give myself away. I must give-away my protection and come vulnerable to their lodges. I must choose to become small, so that they can choose to know me large. I must give-away my Name so that they can know their names" (25). This action presents a Gospel solution to the culturally-interpreted problem.

Buckley states in his preface that "the message of Jesus becomes one not only of restoring humanity to God, and human-to-human, but also of restoring humanity to 'all our relations.'" This phrase, often used in the same way as "Amen", expresses the traditionally indigenous idea that all beings are connected to one another. By invoking this phrase, Buckley is making an explicit claim that the Christian Gospel answers questions left unanswered by American Indian religious tradition. Since he does not address the biblical admonition for humans to rule over creation, and since he plays off of traditional animism rather than confronting it head-on, some may feel he skirts too close to the line between cultural contextualization and syncretism. However, I believe the story succeeds in its goal of introducing the Gospel in a culturally understandable way. This is a very beautiful and unique Christmas book, which should be presented with careful discussion of its deep spiritual themes.