This blog brings my anthropological research on Voodoo to an end for now. I am sure that after this class has finished, I will continue to look into the subject because I have always been interested in learning about religions that are foreign to me. When I started this blog, Voodoo was perhaps the most foreign religion to me. And as far as Voodoo went, that is all I knew it as: a religion.
I have come to realized that Voodoo is not just a religion, but the people who practice have formed a community, a culture. Through my research, I have been able to look past the stereotype that all Voodoo is knit with bad intentions. With such stereotypes come fear and stereotypes of people. If I had met someone who practiced Voodoo prior to my blog, I probably would have avoided them out of fear. I have come to realize that Voodoo does not make someone evil. They may have very different religious beliefs than I do, but they have no more right to be stereotyped than I do as a Christian.
Although I do not completely agree with the practices of the Voodoo religion, I now understand them a little better. I will never understand them as much as someone who actually practices them, but I feel that I understand them more for someone in my own position. As a Christian I see no problem with familiarized myself with a religion that is so different from mine that it is considered to be dangerous. However, I feel it can only be dangerous if you are ignorant of it. Even the Satan quotes God’s words straight from the bible.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009
The Arrest of So Anne
In my very first blog of this series, I analyzed compilation on Voodoo worship songs by a well-known singer of Haiti, Sò Anne. I have recently stumbled upon an article regarding her arrest in Haiti by the United States Marines in 2004. The United States government had believed that she been corroborating with Haitian dictator of the time, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, against then U.S. president George W. Bush, Jr. According to haitiaction.net, U.S. Marines entered the home of Sò Anne illegally, without the knowledge of the Haitian government.
Rumors had gone around that Sò Anne had conducted a Voodoo ritual which involved bathing Aristide in sacrificial blood in an attempt to put a curse on President Bush. In an interview with Democracy Now!, So Anne denied having done anything wrong, saying “That’s why I became in jail, because of Aristide, because I didn’t do nothing bad, you know? I didn’t do nothing bad. I was helping people.” (Anne) The accounted reason that the Marines had invaded her home was said to have been that they had reason to believe she was holding nuclear weapons there and was planning on using it on U.S. government stationed in Haiti. She spent two years in jail until she was released in 2006 when there was no evidence to keep her there.
Voodoo is something that frightens majority of people in the United States, despite the fact that there are members of the cult here. (Again, I use the word cult simply to refer to a religious group.) I feel that if So Anne had not been associated with Voodoo, the United States would have not felt they needed to go after her. Despite the supposed separation between church and state, her religion seemed to pose a threat. Christianity is the dominant religion and aside from atheism, Voodoo can be seen as its complete opposite. Can a viable comparison between this instance and one of the many instances of the Salem Witch Trials?
Works Cited
Anne, So. Interview. Amy Goodman. 15 August 2006.
The Haiti Information Project. "News." 12 May 2004. Haiti Action. 10 December 2009 http://www.haitiaction.net/News/HIP/5_12_4.html.
Rumors had gone around that Sò Anne had conducted a Voodoo ritual which involved bathing Aristide in sacrificial blood in an attempt to put a curse on President Bush. In an interview with Democracy Now!, So Anne denied having done anything wrong, saying “That’s why I became in jail, because of Aristide, because I didn’t do nothing bad, you know? I didn’t do nothing bad. I was helping people.” (Anne) The accounted reason that the Marines had invaded her home was said to have been that they had reason to believe she was holding nuclear weapons there and was planning on using it on U.S. government stationed in Haiti. She spent two years in jail until she was released in 2006 when there was no evidence to keep her there.
Voodoo is something that frightens majority of people in the United States, despite the fact that there are members of the cult here. (Again, I use the word cult simply to refer to a religious group.) I feel that if So Anne had not been associated with Voodoo, the United States would have not felt they needed to go after her. Despite the supposed separation between church and state, her religion seemed to pose a threat. Christianity is the dominant religion and aside from atheism, Voodoo can be seen as its complete opposite. Can a viable comparison between this instance and one of the many instances of the Salem Witch Trials?
Works Cited
Anne, So. Interview. Amy Goodman. 15 August 2006.
The Haiti Information Project. "News." 12 May 2004. Haiti Action. 10 December 2009 http://www.haitiaction.net/News/HIP/5_12_4.html.
Priests and Priestesses
As I discussed in my last blog, Voodoo is a polytheistic religion. As a cult (cult in this context only means “religious group”), Voodoo can also be categorized as religion of animatism. Animatism is a belief in super natural forces that do not reside in beings/souls. One example that may be familiar to most people is Charisma. Another popular example is “the force” known in the Star Wars movies. In Voodoo, that natural force is known as coeleth, which is wisdom and discipline. Coeleth is usually given to Voodoo priests/priestesses by the loas, spirits of ancestors.
In Voodoo, male priests are called houn’gan and female priestesses are known as mam’bo. In regards to power, these religious leaders are comparable to the pope in the catholic church. I find it interesting that women and men can both be religious leaders, since many religions do not allow women to become religious leaders. I suspect this indicates that men and women are considered to have roles of equal importance in the Voodoo culture. Like many other polytheistic religions that worship many goddesses as well as gods, such as cults of Greek deities, I have found that there is a more equal treatment between men and women than in a religion, such as Judaism or Christianity where there is one God who is referred to as a male. Though I am not familiar with the history Voodoo’s society, I can imagine there has not been as much dispute between rights of men and women as there have been in the United States, which originated as a Christian nation.
Works Cited
Laguerre, Michel S. Voodoo Heritage. 98 vols. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications, 1980.
In Voodoo, male priests are called houn’gan and female priestesses are known as mam’bo. In regards to power, these religious leaders are comparable to the pope in the catholic church. I find it interesting that women and men can both be religious leaders, since many religions do not allow women to become religious leaders. I suspect this indicates that men and women are considered to have roles of equal importance in the Voodoo culture. Like many other polytheistic religions that worship many goddesses as well as gods, such as cults of Greek deities, I have found that there is a more equal treatment between men and women than in a religion, such as Judaism or Christianity where there is one God who is referred to as a male. Though I am not familiar with the history Voodoo’s society, I can imagine there has not been as much dispute between rights of men and women as there have been in the United States, which originated as a Christian nation.
Works Cited
Laguerre, Michel S. Voodoo Heritage. 98 vols. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications, 1980.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Voodoo as a Polytheistic Religion
Voodoo is a polytheistic religion. I have heard references to “the God,” but there are also many, which are referred to as mysteries. I don’t really understand how a religion can believe in “the God” and then also believe in other gods. Maybe the reasoning is that God is in charge of all of the other gods. But in that case, why would you need various gods in charge of specific aspects of life when you have the one God who is in charge of everything? To me, this seems to complicate things.
In addition to various gods, voodoo is filled with loas, which are spirits of ancestors past, comparable to saints in the Catholic church. So, when practicing Voodoo, one must make sure that they appease God, all of the mysteries, and their loas. How does one fulfill all of these needs?
I believe that to make such a system manageable, the person practicing voodoo is able to choose who they want to follow, or in the instance of a séance, who they want to so summon. Those practicing divination or using voodoo magic may choose who they call to. In this respect, Voodoo seems to be a religion for humanity. The gods are there to serve the people rather than the people to serve the gods. It seems more of a religion uplifting humanity, rather than religions like Christianity which condemn things of this humanly world. Therefore, I think the main focus of Voodoo is life on earth, especially because after someone dies, they believe their spirits remain on earth and keep in contact with the living. I could be completely wrong here. So, I’ll keep looking into it.
In addition to various gods, voodoo is filled with loas, which are spirits of ancestors past, comparable to saints in the Catholic church. So, when practicing Voodoo, one must make sure that they appease God, all of the mysteries, and their loas. How does one fulfill all of these needs?
I believe that to make such a system manageable, the person practicing voodoo is able to choose who they want to follow, or in the instance of a séance, who they want to so summon. Those practicing divination or using voodoo magic may choose who they call to. In this respect, Voodoo seems to be a religion for humanity. The gods are there to serve the people rather than the people to serve the gods. It seems more of a religion uplifting humanity, rather than religions like Christianity which condemn things of this humanly world. Therefore, I think the main focus of Voodoo is life on earth, especially because after someone dies, they believe their spirits remain on earth and keep in contact with the living. I could be completely wrong here. So, I’ll keep looking into it.
Monday, December 7, 2009
Applying What I Have Learned to My Own Life
As I stated in my blog proposal, I grew up in a predominantly Christian neighborhood. Religion has always been a big part of my life. I would go to church every Sunday and learn bible stories in Sunday School. I am still actively involved in my church community at home. I have always taken to heart the teachings of my church and my family.
I was taught at an early age by the media and the people around me that Voodoo is something evil and only used for bad and, as most children do, I believed what I was told. When I recently returned home for a weekend, I had briefly discussed with my mother the research I have been doing on Voodoo in the United States. As soon as I said Voodoo, her eyes showed a glimpse of fear. When I attended church with my family that Sunday, she told my pastor that I was “studying” Voodoo at school. In response, he raised his eyebrows and exclaimed “Get out of that stuff!”
Of course, I was a little discouraged because there is a clear line between studying/observing a religion and practicing a religion. Since I am doing the former and not the latter, I see no problem in what I am doing. I believe that I am firmly grounded and secure enough in my own religion that I may be able to study another without affecting my personal beliefs as a Christian.
Studying Voodoo has not convinced me to abandon my own culture to take up a life practicing Voodoo. It has, however, enabled me to see past the stereotype placed upon the Voodoo culture. I have been able to remove the label to see Voodoo as what it really is: a religion. And just like every other religion, there are the forces of good and evil. For some reason, it has been stigmatized as a purely evil religion. To the people who practice Voodoo, it is not something evil; For them, it is a way of improving life, of helping others, and of answering the questions we all ask: What are we here for? And what happens to us when we die?
I was taught at an early age by the media and the people around me that Voodoo is something evil and only used for bad and, as most children do, I believed what I was told. When I recently returned home for a weekend, I had briefly discussed with my mother the research I have been doing on Voodoo in the United States. As soon as I said Voodoo, her eyes showed a glimpse of fear. When I attended church with my family that Sunday, she told my pastor that I was “studying” Voodoo at school. In response, he raised his eyebrows and exclaimed “Get out of that stuff!”
Of course, I was a little discouraged because there is a clear line between studying/observing a religion and practicing a religion. Since I am doing the former and not the latter, I see no problem in what I am doing. I believe that I am firmly grounded and secure enough in my own religion that I may be able to study another without affecting my personal beliefs as a Christian.
Studying Voodoo has not convinced me to abandon my own culture to take up a life practicing Voodoo. It has, however, enabled me to see past the stereotype placed upon the Voodoo culture. I have been able to remove the label to see Voodoo as what it really is: a religion. And just like every other religion, there are the forces of good and evil. For some reason, it has been stigmatized as a purely evil religion. To the people who practice Voodoo, it is not something evil; For them, it is a way of improving life, of helping others, and of answering the questions we all ask: What are we here for? And what happens to us when we die?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)