Skip to main content
Intellect

New book describes relationship between Franciscans, Navajo

A Brigham Young University sociology professor has released a book relating the experiences of Catholic Franciscan missionaries among the Navajo people from 1898-1921.

Howard Bahr's "The Navajo as Seen by the Franciscans" describes the weaving together of two cultures that were forever changed by the experience. The work includes original accounts from diaries, correspondence and unfinished drafts, along with 12 rare black-and-white photographs.

A few of the chapters are more than a century old. The book includes both primary and secondary source materials and shares how many of the Franciscans came to live among the Navajo for their entire lives.

"I assume that most people like to pass on a good story or to share the atypical and the well-expressed experience," Bahr says.

"My immersion in the Franciscan archives has yielded much that, in my judgment, is worthwhile: much that illuminates Navajo history, that offers alternative perspective on events and trends, or that is surprising, amusing, occasionally compelling and often inspiring," he said.

For information on "The Navajo as Seen by the Franciscans," contact Howard Bahr at Howard_Bahr@byu.edu.

Writer: Devin Knighton

Related Articles

data-content-type="article"

Green-thumb dynasty: BYU landscaping wins fifth national championship in six years

March 27, 2024
For the fifth time in six years, BYU students dug, pruned and planted their way to the National Collegiate Landscaping Competition title, the March Madness of college landscaping teams. BYU bested 50 other universities in the four-day event, outscoring the second-place finisher by more than 358 points and breaking the 5000-point total for the first time in the 48-year history of the tournament.
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= overrideTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText= overrideTextAlignment=
data-content-type="article"

Forum: How to be a confident pluralist

March 26, 2024
In a democracy where people hold many conflicting views, how do we each honor our own values while making decisions together? Grappling with that question in Tuesday’s forum address, Harvard professor Danielle Allen encouraged her audience to meet this challenge by becoming “confident pluralists.”
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= overrideTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText= overrideTextAlignment=
data-content-type="article"

More than money, family and community bonds prep teens for college success

March 21, 2024
Family bonds make the difference in getting teens to college, BYU study says.
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= overrideTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText= overrideTextAlignment=
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= overrideTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText=