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.
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I just read all your posts. =]
ReplyDeleteFor one, I'm really happy and proud that you've chosen to conduct your research and give insight from an open-minded point of view. Not many Christians find themselves able to respect neo-paganism as a legitimate belief system. I personally know more about Wicca and Hellenic Polytheism, so reading your findings and commentary on Voodoo was really fascinating. Great job!