Voodoo Religion

Approximately 90 percent of Haitians are Catholic and 10 % are Protestant (Jacobson, 2003). Within the Haitian-American community, however, Voodoo exists side by side with Christian faiths. Jacobson goes on to explain that “many Haitians see no contradiction in calling themselves Christians while engaging in Voodoo practices” (2003). In Haiti, Catholicism is highly ritualistic and religious practices combine the ancient rituals of African-based cultures with Western-based faith practices. Jacobson explains that “Voodoo cosmology is made up of a large numbers of supernatural spirits…these spirits are believed to have great influence on human beings and for that reason, they must be respected” (2003).

Voodoo is an old religion that finds its roots in west Africa. Remnants of its physical history can be found throughout the West African Coast where major slave trading markets were located. An Example of this are locations contain trees of forgetting in which slaves were “Zombified” by administering herbs to make them more compliant. Today these historical sites draw tourist learning about the horrors of the slave trade Voodoo beliefs originated from African animist religions that predate Islam and Christian influences and were not understood by the European slave owners who forbid its practice. It created a fear in the Europeans and is misunderstood even today. Its travel to the Caribbean, Haiti and America had a lasting impact and is still practiced.

For instance, the principles of Hoodoo are based almost solely on the betterment of one’s own life whereas the main goals of Voodoo are to improve one’s life but to also uphold withstanding connections within the realm of spirits and with other Voodooists (Haas, 2011). Not to mention in a sense of irony, it is Hoodoo culture that finds more use in voodoo dolls and doll magic to curse specific people or influence minds and hearts of individuals as opposed to Voodoo (Raven, n.d.). Furthermore, Voodooism is a mixture of monotheism and polytheism and requires official priests or priestesses to ordain rituals (Haas, 2011). Correspondingly, Voodoo is much akin to other religions in the sense that there are deviations of the practice; indeed, just as there are Protestants, Baptists, and Catholics when referring to the Christian faith, there are variants made in Voodoo, such as Haitian Voudon or Louisiana Voodoo (Voodoo, 2015). Hoodooism’s emphasis on individual power makes it a practice that is available to persons of any faith as it does not require a “formally designated minister” (Hoodoo (folk magic),

Souls, spirits, and their purpose regarding humans and life influences different Hmong cultural traditions, such as the Seed Ceremony, the String-Tying ritual, and a Hmong funeral (PBS:1). Each tradition involves souls and their connections to the human body, which establishes the importance of souls in the Hmong culture as they are a continuing theme and belief in many traditions and rituals (PBS:1). The Hmong and this connections to the soul is an example of habitus, unconscious actions and activities individuals in a group do often. The people are believing in spirits and their connection to souls. It is an unconscious and unquestionable belief shared by the Hmong people; therefore, categorizing the active thought and belief in spirits as habitus. Considering the Hmong’s viewpoint on souls in traditional rituals as habitus is critical to understand because it establishes that these views are common and important to the Hmong, thus establishing this view as an ordinary detail of their life. Spirits and their healing powers have a much greater value in Hmong culture over other healing methods, such as western medicine. Due to their large faith and belief in healing with spirits, other practices are not taken as seriously, as evident by Lia’s parents and not following the medication’s directions. There was a language and cultural barrier that also influenced their

Catholicism has many Saints which are worshipped by catholic people who they can call upon in their times of need and that are used to represent certain stories and morals. Voodoo religion has very similar Saints of their own, many of which represent Saints from Catholicism. To begin we know

This process is said to be reciprocal, and follower must look after Lwa by performing these rituals, which can sometimes come in in the form of animal sacrifice. In the other hand some Voodooist ritual allow followers to thank the spirit for their protection, blessings or good fortune. To maintain a good relationship with the Lwa, or stay in good terms followers must all conduct themselves properly according to the customs of the community and the religion. In this way one can see how Voodoo can influence a persons day by day decision, activities, and decision making. Part of voodoo belief is that the Lwa communicate with followers through possession. The Lwa takes place of the host, and temporarily displaces its soul. According to this belief the medium cannot feel pain or become injured while he is in trans. The lwa speaks through the host giving intructions, advices or prophecies of future events. In some cases the Lwa can rebuke the host for failing to perform their duties. This idea of being possessed unites two different types Voodoo practitioners. One of them primarly existing in northern, and central portion of West African coast. This type of voodoo is the oldest known Voodoo and goes back to 6000 years ago from to Fon and Kongo. The other is practiced primarly in Haiti as well as in parts of north and sourth America.

One of the most important aspects of Voodoo is the summoning of the Lwa, or spirits. This is done in a service and drumming is an essential part of this service because it provides music. Dancing is also a very important part of the service. These services involve nearly everyone through either the drumming or the dancing.

respect these spirits and go to them for guidance in times of trouble. Unlike most

Though not a new religion, this religion has a lot of history and similar beliefs of other religions. The interpretation of death and the afterlife is interesting. Before, I touch on this its, important to know that community and the people is very important when it comes to Voodoo as a religion. In the event of a death the community gets really involved, if a loved one is dying, the family all tries to come together for prayer. People, who practice Voodoo, don’t believe that death is the end. When death occurs, they believe that certain rituals need to be done to help the soul. Loved ones of the deceased perform a “Rite of Reclamation” which is to call back the spirit. A priest or priestess, which are called houngan or mambo; serve as healers, diviners, psychologists, counselors and spiritual leaders; help during this time to bring the spirit back so they family can

The Voodoo tradition that is alive and well in Louisiana today is brought to the United States care of the slave trade from the early 16th century. West African slaves in the south kept their traditions alive in the US, despite an overwhelming and coercive Roman Catholic influence. Late in the evening, and behind closed doors, slaves returned to their roots to practice the traditions that their owners disapproved of. Despite their desire to keep their African traditions alive, they were powerless to stop the forceful nature of the Roman Catholic traditions. After many years, a new ritual order arose that blended Roman Catholicism and ancestral West African traditions: Louisiana Voodoo.

Many of today’s religions share strict beliefs that are found only within their own religion, they restrict the possibility to believe anything other that what the religion tells its followers to believe, in Voodoo you are not a follower. Voodoo is a religion influenced by many other religions; it allows its followers to feel free. When Voodoo worshipers left Africa and reached the far away island of Haiti, the Voodoo religion changed. Catholicism of the slave owners, and various alternative religions from native islanders, influenced Voodoo. Voodoo easily incorporated these other religions because of its welcoming nature. Voodoo was appealing, especially to the slaves and poor members of a community. Because it was so inviting, it became a way for people with troubles and turmoil to unite. The slaves united through Voodoo to throw off white rule. It was the first successful slave

It is said that he has the power to tell spirits to do many things for him. He also has many spirits afraid of him. He is not the only Loa of the dead although there is one that is always called and they refer to him as “Papa Ghede.” Papa Ghede is head of the house hold of the graveyard Loa’s. These Loa’s are not evil nor good they just exist and do their specific

I'm sure everyone has their own perception of voodoo inside their head. Most people think includes black magic, evil spirits, and causing harm to others. However, voodoo is actually a complex tradition of faiths and beliefs that combine into an overall world full of religion and magic. It is believed to have started sometime around 1724 in Africa, Haiti specifically. Today, there are still people in parts of the United States that believe in voodoo and practice it. Voodoo embraces the

Voodoo is a religion rich in heritage and founded in faith and community. The religion has been villainized by western culture and has been wrongly portrayed as malignant and dangerous. The religion is not founded in any of the (known) "black magics" or fear popularized by Hollywood films, but rather it is based on balance and tradition. The religion is not something that should be encountered with inhibition or fear induced from childhood horror stories, but embraced for its strength and history.

This article focuses on Voodooism, which is a “religion” practiced in Haiti since the beginning of its creation. In this article, the author claims that despite the misconceptions that many have about the practice of voodoo, Haitians don’t consider it as their religion, but more something that they serve and use to meet their religious needs. While most of them consider themselves Catholics, Haitians serve the lwa, which are African spirits that are honored for their powerfulness. Practiced since the beginning of the Haitian Revolution in 1791, Voodoo helped Haitian descendants survived slavery,