CallaFirestormBW
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quote:
Vivisection is wrong! But sacrificing kittens, terrified as they watch a series of other animals slaughtered before them, must be respected as a valid cultural expression.
And once again ignorance reigns on CM.
Yes, Voudoun may include animal sacrifices -- usually chickens, pigs, or goats -- FOOD ANIMALS. The animals are cared for better than most of the animals slaughtered every day to feed First World humans, and the ritual sacrifice of these animals is done -extremely- respectfully, in a way that cherishes every bit of the offering made, and in a manner that is quick, clean, efficient, and humane. Yes, they practice animal sacrifice -- but nothing is wasted. Even things like feathers from the chickens, bones, feet, and skin are made use of. Foods given to the Loa are not considered 'wasted' -- they are considered proper payment for the Loa's efforts on their behalf, and they believe that the spirit of that sacrificed animal is 'anointed', and it will live in luxury with the Loa.
Every religion in the world has a history of animal sacrifice, including Christianity. There was a REASON that Jesus Christ was called "The Lamb of God".
It pays not to get your information third-hand through the TV screen. (Mine came from actually -attending over a dozen ceremonies as a requirement for my coursework in comparative religions, and from having a life-mate whose family came from Haiti and were active in Haitian Vaudou.)
Here are some "realities" of Voudou:
Voudou is monotheistic. They believe in ONE GOD, though they consider him unreachable/untouchable. The Loa are not gods, but spirits. They may be spirits of ancestors, of places, of intense emotions (like love), of generative and destructive processes like agriculture, birth, or storms. They are divided into 'nations' and 'families', just like the human population they interact with. The Loa, being more than human, and less than God, walk the world between humanity and the Divine, and can, according to Voudou belief, directly affect the area that they're considered responsible for or intercede with Bondye (God) to help the human in need. Many of the Loa in Haiti are connected to one of the Roman Catholic saints, though the connection to Catholicism isn't universal.
The making of zombies is not related, technically, to Voudoun, nor are 'voodoo dolls'. Zombie-making is typically done by a bokor -- a sorcerer. Like Christian priests and sorcerers/warlocks (warlock means 'oathbreaker') in the middle ages, the bokor is the antithesis of the Voudou priest(ess), though xhe may have started -out- training on the same road as the priests, xhe stepped off the path and moved from a life-affirming practice to a death-promoting one. Voudou is an ecstatic religion, and is focused on the life-force. Zombie creation, in contrast, is typically a practice designed to -imitate- life in the -absence- of life, and so is considered to be focused on death energy, and is considered disgusting by those who practice Voudou.
Now for the 'voodoo dolls'. The practice of sympathetic magic using poppets is common in almost every religious path. The symbolism of the poppet represents a given person, and is "connected" to that person using intimate items like hair, fingernails, blood, or skin dust. According to my companion's Mambo (a priestess... priests are called Houngans), she uses poppets for healing, so that the Loa can find the person who needs their help more easily. She did tell me that sometimes, someone will ask for something bad to be done to someone, but that a good priest will find ways to heal ill feelings between people without promoting revenge, but even priests make bad judgments sometimes, so she won't say that poppets and other sympathetic tools are not used in bad ways sometimes.
DC
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Said to me recently: "Look, I know you're the "voice of reason"... but dammit, I LIKE being unreasonable!!!!"
"Your mind is more interested in the challenge of becoming than the challenge of doing." Jon Benson, Bodybuilder/Trainer
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