Afro-Caribbean Religions

Gerald F. MurrayDepartment of Anthropology

University of Florida

Map of the region

Tectonic plates

Distribution of Islands by colonizers

Metropolis # islands

British 17

French 4

Spanish 3

Dutch 6

American 3

Total # islands 33

Distribution of islands by size

Metropolis sq. mi pct. Area

British 12,598 14%

French 11,805 13%

Spanish 65,078 72%

Dutch 378 0.70%

American 132 0.30%

Total area sq. mi 89,991 100%

Islands by population

Metropolis pop pct. Pop

British isles pop. 4,904,400 14%

French isles pop. 8,191,000 22%

Spanish isles pop. 22,952,000 63%

Dutch isles pop 261,001 1%

American isles pop 132,500 1%

Total Carib. Pop 36,440,901 100%

Comparative density of select territories

Territory sq.mi pop pop/sq.mi

Florida 58,560 18,300,000 313

Haiti 10,714 9,035,536 843Dominican Republic 18,816 9,650,054 513

Cuba 42,827 11,451,652 267

Puerto Rico 3,435 3,971,020 1,156

What is religion?

“A cultural system by which people

• are taught to believe in an invisible spirit world

• and to engage in rituals to interact with that spirit world

• under the guidance of leaders who are believed to have more spiritual knowledge, power, or authority.”

Universal elements of religious systems

• Spirit beliefs (pantheon)

• Rituals to interact with the spirits

• Specialists with spiritual authority or knowledge

Religion worldwide

Syncretic religions of the Caribbean

• Merging of different cultural sources: Europe and Africa• Cuba: Santeria.• Haiti: Vodou. • Dominican Republic: Baile del Espiritu Santo• Puerto Rico: Espiritismo.• Trinidad: Shango• Jamaica: Obeah

Yoruba derived Santeria pantheon: the Orisha

• Obatala: (Our Lady of Mercy)• Yemaya: (Mary, Star of the Sea)• Eleggua: (St. Anthony or St. Michael) • Oshun: (Our Lady of Caridad de Cobre)• Shango (St. Barbara)• Oya (Our Lady of Candelaria)• Ogun (St. Peter)

Preparation for a ritual to Oshun: River deity

• Purpose: Goddess of love and money• Elements: 7 day candles, yellow ceramic plate, oranges,

roses, paper fans, yellow tablecloth, small jar of honey, 5 small pastries, a letter of petition written to Ochun.

• Go to secluded riverbank. Clean the area.• Spread out the tablecloth, put the plate in the center, with

your letter on the plate. Arrange oranges and pastries. Put the vase of roses near the plate. Put 5 yellow candles around the plate and the roses.

The ritual itself• Stand and face the river. • Hold the jar of honey and pray to Ochun for love and/or money• Open the jar of honey and taste some with your finger. • Pour out all the honey over the pastries and oranges on the plate. • Light the candles• Collect river water in the empty honey jar• Take the water home, mix with spring water and cinnamon and boil• Take a shower , scrub the tub clean, fill with water. • Pour the cinnamon / river water mixture into the tub. • Immerse yourself in the water. • Dry yourself and light a yellow candle in your bedroom.

The specialists: Santeros

Anthropological encounter with the rural Haitian spirit world

• Selection of a community• Initial fears of the villagers

– Blan vin pran tè nou– Blan se lougarou. La manje pitit nou.

• The rental of the dead houngan’s house• Ceremony of welcome

Voodoo and Vodou as incorrect names

• Outsiders want nouns and adjectives for religion. Catholicism / Catholic Judaism / Jewish

• People had no noun for the folk religion nor an adjective for its practitioners.

• Used a verb phrase: sèvi loua (serve the loua). Practitioners: moun ki konn sèvi loua

• Use of vodoun and vodouisant do not correspond to what villagers say

The spirits of rural Vodoun

• Pantheon: Bon-Dye and the lwa• Monotheism “Bon Dye devan – Marasa deye”• Bon-Dye / Gran Met: • Neither trinitarian nor christological• Source of life and fertility• Author of natural disasters• Arbitrary and punitive• Beyond reach of humans and of other spirits

Lesser spirits of rural Vodoun

• Loua (major anthropomorphic spirits)– Male and female– “sweet” and “bitter”.– Friendly possessions in rituals.– Expect music, food, drink– Bring illness if they are neglected

• Le-mò (the dead)

Other preternatural beings

• Lougarou – vampire• Zombi -- the dead brought back as slaves• San pouel: secret societies

The rituals of rural Vodoun

• Rituals: Catholic rites of passage• Rituals not found in Catholicism

– Drumming, song, and dance– Spirit possession– Animal sacrifice

A chante lwa

Pyè Danbala m se wozo (2)M pa fatra, ya bale-m jete (2)Jou lapli a tonbe, ma leve ma wè yo.

Stone of Danbala, I am a reed (2)I’m not garbage; yet they’ll throw me out (2)The day the rain falls, I’ll rise and see them

Ritual specialists of rural Vodoun

• Catholic clergy officiate at the rites of passage.• Houngan / mambo are the major folk specialists. • Other ritual actors

– Hounsi (female assistant)– Tanbouyè (drummer – always male)

• The houngan \ bòkò distinction: right handed vs. left handed.

Functions

• Historical function: Military• Mass media stereotypes: aggression /

sorcery. “Pins in dolls”• Ethnographic finding: major function and

focus of rural Vodou: Diagnosis and healing of illness.

• Expanded urban functions: Market success, job search, romantic

Voodoo dolls on the internet: Zombieye, Inc.

• Zombieye unique, handmade voodoo dolls are available in four themes: – Our red dolls bring you love – Our blue dolls bring you luck– Our yellow dolls bring you power – Our green dolls bring you money

• Voodoo t-shirts and coffee mugs also available. • Order voodoo dolls and other goods using the online form

or your credit card using PayPal.You have to stick it to get it!

Questionable propositions about Vodoun

• “Vodoun is devil worship.” • “Vodoun is an African religion

(Camouflage theory)”• “Vodoun is the religion of the Haitian

people”

“Gerald, sa ou kwè ou menm”?

• People asked me at the end what I thought• The pantheon: God, angels, and demons.• Animal sacrifice and feeding the spirits• Spirit possession• Dangers of purchasing alien spirits