The spirits are present in mountains, forest, pools, streams, storms, thunder, lightning, tides, many plants and animals, and other forces of nature. The earth is usually depicted as a goddess and linked to fertility. Water is frequently seen as a sacred element. Worship varies from complex systems of temples, priests, and rituals, or less formal worship done by individuals or family groups. Another form of belief of the universe was the High God.
The High God is less important than other spirits in African and American religions. It is the Supreme Being, but it is almost unconnected with the concerns of earth. Important or less important issues are the work of the spirits or ancestors. The High God is only appealed to in severe emergencies. Others think of the High God as a personal God. To some, the High God is not a personality but a divine power that is revealed in humans, nature, and the spirit world. To Native Africans, the High God created the universe and then retired to some distant place. The High God does not have a lot to do with the world and its daily functions, except at times of uncertainty. One native African story tells of how most native Africans think, of the creation. It is about the High God who creates the world and assigned jobs to some lesser deities, and then retired to the heavens with little interest of what was happening in the world. However, to some, the High God created and governs the universe, even though they still believe in the minor gods, spirits, and ancestors. Another group, the Nuer, believe that the High God still plays an active role in the lives of humans, being the caretaker, the protector, and the punisher. In some African groups, the High God has a temple or priest dedicated to it. The native Africans and Americans had a different perspective about the dead.
The native African and Americans treat their departed differently but with great respect.
