"Only two things are infinite; the universe and human stupidity, and the former I'm not sure of". An immortal quote from the mind of Albert Einstein whereas the exact reference to which it applies I am not positive, however I could not agree more with the preciseness to which this statement may apply to the study of world religions. Take for instance the fact that 76% of Americans believe that religious diversity is a source of strength and vitality and though they believe there is only one absolute Truth, it is still acceptable and in fact encouraged to "borrow" inviting ideas from other faiths. Ultimately the belief is dwindled down to the simply profound argument that all religions must be respected, but not necessarily believed.
             When considering the different religions of the world there is no better or more obvious place to begin than the primitive and ancient religions. The first notable problem when mulling over the religion of the early Native Americans is that they have hardly any sacred texts and that there is little direct evidence that any of their ancient practices were not influenced by Christianity and other religions. Taking this into consideration it is still seemingly obvious that most Native American religions are animistic which implies that all matter throughout the world is infused with individual spirits. For example, the idea of an anciently wise talking tree in the Disney movie Pocahontas would not be too far of a stretch for early religions. Tied directly into this notion is the fact that most Native American religions are polytheistic. It is also worth noting that these deities contact the natural world through direct visions and dreams and that the spirits of ancient ancestors play a very prominent role in their religious beliefs. According to Max Muller these ideas make perfect sense because he believed that primitive cultures sought to explain the physical world in any...