Santera: The Beliefs and Rituals - Coursework Example

SANTERIA There are many subcultures around the world who have been dominated by mainstream cultures and have lost out because of this. Indeed some cultures have been so trivialized and discriminated against by dominant cultures that their stories have never been told. One of the most fascinating of these groups—a group about which very little is written—is the Santeria. The Santeria have a long and storied history. In many ways they are also a very modern religion—evolving out of a world where cultures and faiths clashed. Religions such as the Santeria are called syncretic religions—faiths that meld many different groups into one, trying to unify very disparate histories and practices. They share a history and tradition with certain faiths, but over time they have evolved, added and mutating rituals and making up new ones along the way (New Advent). Can it be said that the Santeria are one of the world’s more successful syncretic religions? Perhaps, but it depends on the criteria one uses to measure success. For example, there are not many members of Santeria and it is also quite a geographically and racially limited faith (de la Torre, 12). It probably would not appeal to a broad segment of the world’s population. The practitioners of this faith have also not made much of an impact on contemporary life. But before discussing this issue further, some history about Santeria is important. The Santeria developed largely out of a mix of African tribal religions and new world spirituality that meshed together in the plantations of the Caribbean. During the 16th and 17th century many Africans were kidnapped from their homes on the East Coast of Africa and forcibly transferred to the Caribbean to work on sugarcane plantations as slaves (Eltis, 156-7). Their journey in the Middle Passage was a truly cruel and terrifying one. Although the place they were going to was very religious—mostly Catholic—the people there had no real respect for the Africans’ traditional religions. Many new arrivals to the New World found their religion had been criminalized and that they had to be baptized into a new faith (Eltis, 78). They had the vestiges of their old life stripped from them as they were nothing more than rags. Over time, the old religion and the new religions became one and Santeria was born. Santeria has special gods and special priests and interesting ceremonies that sometimes feature animal sacrifices. Music plays a very important role in the rituals (de la Torre, 121). In these respects it is similar to many of its constituent religions, including Catholicism. All of these reasons establish that Santeria is a fascinating religion; this essay will examine some further points that strengthen this assertion. To many, Santeria is looked at with some suspicion as there have been some unfortunate news stories about it in recent years (McQuiston). People sometimes have the ideas that it involves black magic, sacrifices, and drinking blood. These controversies will be further discussed below. But an important question to think about before looking at the reason why people who practice Santeria are stereotyped by the mainstream culture, is whether Santeria meets the definition of religion or could be better described as a cult? This is an important issue as it goes to the issue of how Santeria is perceived by the mainstream and indeed even the people who follow it. It safe to say it is best described as a religion rather than a cult. Cults are usually led by charismatic gurus and do not last very long (Singer, 13). They come and go, usually in the blink of an eye. Santeria, however, is a series of cultural practices that have been passed down over the years. Its purpose, as Miguel de la Torre writes, is to assist the individual navigate life’s difficulties (de la Torre, 4). It is supposed to bring peace and a better understanding of the world and improve communities. Its purpose is not to enrich one particular leader or group of people; Santeria welcomes anyone who is interested in practicing it. This is an important question as it goes to the way its practitioners see themselves in society and to their religion’s respectability. That said, Santeria also lacks some of the things that make established religious groups so identifiable. For example, the formal aspect of Santeria is very limited; the religion itself is not very visible or easy for ordinary people to see (BBC Online). The average person knows nothing about its symbols or hierarchies or even the names of its gods. According to the BBC, for example, “Santeria has few buildings devoted to the faith. Rituals often take place in halls rented for the purpose, or privately in Santeria homes which are may be fitted with altars for ritual purposes. During appropriate rituals the Orishas are able to meet believers at these sacred spaces” (BBC Online). In this respect, you sort of have to be initiated into the religion as you can’t just walk down the street, see a Santeria church, walk in and talk to the priest. In the case of Santeria you will probably have to know someone like a family member in order to get acquainted with the priests, the rituals, and the other important aspects of the religion. This is one of the drawbacks to Santeria’s wider acceptance by the public (González-Wippler, 161). But it is clear that those who believe in this religion, really believe in it, and that there identification with the group gives them spiritual strength and provides for them a sense of community. As Migene González-Wippler writes in her excellent introduction to the practice of Santeria: It is clear that the work of the santero, like that of the espiritista, is helpful to the Hispanic community. Latin American are so involved with magic and folk healing practices that their mental and spitiual health are directly connected with their beliefs. A Hispanic often has more faith in the home remedies prescribed by a santero or a spiritist than in those of an accredited physician. And it is not uncommon for a person to visit a doctor only because the santero has advised it. (286) You can see that Santeria in some ways provides a parallel community to the more traditional one, even extending so far as medical care. In this respect it is much like a religion in that it works its way into every crevice of a person’s life. In part because Santeria is practiced by immigrants to the United States, in particular those who are likely to be ghettoized by the mainstream communities and probably have trouble fitting in, it is not so surprising that Santeria is sometimes viewed by people in mainstream communities as a suspicious religion that may have bad purposes (González-Wippler, 187). They usually know nothing about Santeria but they might think it is in some way similar to voodoo or that it involves a lot of strange rituals that would be unpleasant. These opinions are usually based on xenophobia or other bad feelings, nevertheless they cling strongly Santeria and its public perception. This is an unfortunate state of affairs that can be remedied with more education. However, there are occasional news stories which exacerbate the problem. One of the more shocking case said to be associated with Santeria happened in New York in the 1990s (McQuiston). The case of a woman suffocating her daughter in order to exorcise her of an evil demon captured the public imagination. For many, who had never heard of Santeria, the case, as strange as it was, was definitive. Richard Haley, the lawyer representing Serena, said that Mrs. Miranda had a strong influence over her daughter. He said Mrs. Miranda had raised her three daughters under a strict religious doctrine and had educated them at home, permitting them to go to public school only during their high school years. Both lawyers indicated that they would seek to convince a jury that while their clients were not psychologically ill or mentally diseased when they suffocated Charity, they were nevertheless suffering from a mental defect because of their intense religious beliefs (McQuiston). Whether or not this is a legitimate practice of Santeria—and many argued it was not—it was still very negative to the public perception of the religion. They fact that the woman was found insane due to he intensive religious belief also did not help public proponents of Santeria make common ground with the mainstream. There are a few other minor cases like this that affected the religion; what is needed is a positive role model who practices Santeria. The best thing for Santeria these days would probably be if an NBA star or MLB player were to go publicly on the record and say they consider themselves to be Santeria. That would be helpful. Santeria has been around for a long time, but it had not grown too much. It has mostly thrived in marginalized communities and stayed away from the mainstream. This makes sense considering its difficult and painful history. As the 21st century begins it has the possibility to reach a bigger audience but it needs a higher profile with some good role models. Works Consulted de la Torre, Miguel. Santería: The Beliefs and Rituals of a Growing Religion in America. New York: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2004. Eltis, David. The Rise of African Slavery in the Americas. New York: Vintage, 2000. González-Wippler Migene. Santeria: The Religion: Faith, Rites, Magic. New York: Llewellyn Worldwide, 1998. John T. McQuiston. “Woman Who Called Her Daughter Possessed Pleads Not Guilt to her Murder.” New York Times. January 28, 1998. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9803E0DB1F3BF93BA15752C0A96E958260 Margaret Singer. Cults in Our Midst. New York: Rev Upd Su edition, 2003. BBC Online. “Santeria.” http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/santeria/ritesrituals/rituals.shtml “Syncretism.” New Advent. 2009. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14383c.htm Read More