LATINO JEWS, AFRO-LATINOS, AND AMERINDIANS leveloping .docx

LATINO JEWS, AFRO-LATINOS, AND AMERINDIANS
leveloping our Jewish identity," Kaire, 25, college in the United
States, he said "
1e audience. "Now we do, but it's a slow · · " · I don't what the
so Iuhon 1s, Berner said. [ ] L_
lllOI,
s." It's hard to form a community, he said, According to Bertha
Delgado F · : · . arin, 23 ,e so many young Jews go to college
outside tiago de Cuba, the challenge on h . ' 0 fSan.
. 1· . er is1and . nala City-either elsewhere in Guatemala 1._
to rev1ta 1ze a Jewish community that IS"""
he United Sates. Those who stay don't nec- mant for years.
After the Cuban was dor.
revolur .r join the student group. That worries the 101959, about
90 percent of Cuba's Je ft n I Ill . ws e £s president-elect,
Joseph Mejia. nomIC reasons, and Jewish life in th oreco.
. e country '-•-e need to unify the community of young ther
dwmdled after the govern ' 111
. • . . ment beo~-•,," Mejia, 21, said. "If not, we're going to
d1scouragmg re11g1ous practice. There still _-.,...
te customs." It's not always easy to live a permanent rabbi in
Cuba, but Jewish re . 15 ~
. . Th . life in Guatemala, Mejia and Kaire agreed. 11e 1s thriv.
mg agam. e synagogue m Santiago d

exico, if you want to keep kosher you have located more than
500 miles from Ha e Cuba,
vana on the . restaurants to choose from. If you don't
southwestern part of the island was red d" . . ' e teated~osher in
Mexico, it's because you don't m 1995 after havmg been closed
for 16 ye
UL
o," Kaire said. "But here, it's very difficult." DI e ga d o Farin
did not learn she was Jewish until
hough Mexico has 50,000 Jews, the over- she was 12. She
remembers her mother lighting
ting majority are in Mexico City. Outside small candle each
Friday night, but she didn't 1cncn:
pita!, the communities are small and iso- why._ Now she attends
synagogue on Fridays and
-more similar in some ways to Guatemala studies Torah on
Saturdays. She said she worries
tan Mexico City. about how to get those younger than her
involved
1ardo Berner is from Monterrey, a city of in the community.
Intermarriage also is an issue,
:han 3 million people-including some 120 she noted, since there
are only about a dozen Jews
families-in northern Mexico. He said that between the ages of
13 and 30 in Santiago de Cuba.
every Jewish person he knows, including Though her own
husband is not Jewish, Delgado
1er and uncles, has had to go to Mexico City Farin says she is
determined to provide a Jewish
I a Jewish spouse. He probably will do the upbringing for their
daughter, Sophia, 2. "We have
said Berner, a 23-year-old student. Main- a lot to learn about
Judaism," she said. "But ever,

~ a community of young Jews in Monterrey day I'm determined
to learn more-and I feel
.allenge because many young people go to extremely, extremely
proud to be Jewish."
140. Black Religion in Cuba
~steban Mon_tejo (c. 1860-1973), remarkably, lived long
enough to see in the Cuban revolu-
tion a meaning and purpose behind his long arduous life. Sought
out by Miguel Barnet
(b. _1940), Cuban anthropologist and writer, Montejo dictated
episodes of and commen-
taries on his life, which Barnet shaped into a biography of"an
authentic actor in theprocess
0[ history in Cuba" (from "Introduction" to the first edition of
Barnet's Biografia de un
c_u~arr6n [19661). Montejo's long life included working as a
slave on a sugar plantation,
livz~g as a maroon in the forests of Cuba, fighting (1895-1898)
for independence from
Spam, and witnessing U.S. occupation ofCuba.
The excerpts below deal with the whole range of religions in
Cuba, during the period of
~ - 1994),3'-
; iguel Barnet, Biography ofa Runaway Slave, trans. W. Nick
Hill (Willimantic, Conn.: Curbstone Press,
8. Reprmted by permission of Curbstone Press.
BLACK RELIGION IN CUBA
slavery (ending in 1886) and up to the 1960s. What is that range
ofreligion? In the syncretic
religions, how strong is the African strain? What aspects

ofCatholicism have been absorbed
by those religions in which the African strain predominates?
J understand it, at that time the guajiros ever tried to work a hex
on me because I have
usic using only a guitar. Later, around the always been a loner,
and I've never cared to know
90, they played danzones on those piano las too much about
other people's business.
ordions and gourds. But the white man Witchcraft is more
common with the Congos
ys had music different from the black. than with the Lucumis.
The Lucumis are more
man's music has no drum at all. Tasteless. allied to the Saints
and to God. They liked to get
same thing more or less happens with reli- up early with the
strength ofthe morning and look
The African gods are different although at the sky and pray and
sprinkle water on the
m to resemble the other ones, the gods of ground. When you
least expect it, the Lucumi is
ests, which are stronger and less decorated. doing his work. I
have seen old blacks kneeling on
ow, if you up and go to a Catholic church, the ground for more
than three hours speaking in
no apples, no rocks, no rooster feathers. their tongue and telling
the future. The difference
an African household those are the first between the Congo and
the Lucumi is that the
you see. The African is more down to earth. Congo does things,
and the Lucumi tells the
ew about two African religions in the bar- future . He knows

everything through the dilog-
' the Lucumi and the Conga. The Conga gunes, which are snails
from Africa. With mystery
more important. At Flor de Sagua it was inside. They're white
and a little lumpy. Eleggua's
own because the witches put spells on peo- eyes are made from
that snail.
ey gained the trust of all the slaves with The old Lucumis would
lock themselves in the
rtune-telling. I came to know the older rooms of the barracoon,
and they would clean the
more after Abolition. [ ... ] evil a person had done out of him. If
there was
the work of the Congo religion they used some black man who
had desire for a woman, the
and animals. They called the dead nkise Lucumi would calm
him down. I think they did
es majases, or emboba. They prepared that with coconuts, obi,
which were sacred. They
s and everything, and that's where the are the same as the
coconuts today, which are still
make hexes was. They were called ngan- sacred and can't be
touched. If someone dirtied
the Congos had their ngangas for may- the coconut, he would
get a severe punishment. I
The ngangas had to work with the sun. always knew when
things were going good
he has always been the intelligence and because the coconut
said so. He ordered Alafia to
ngth of men. As the moon is for women. be pronounced so

everyone would know there
sun is more important because he gives was no tragedy. All the
saints spoke through the
e moon. The Congos worked with the sun coconuts. Now the
master of all of them was
every day. When they had a problem with Obatala. Obatala was
an ancient, so I heard, who
son, they followed that person along any was always dressed in
white. They said that
d gathered up the dirt they walked on. Obatala was the one who
created you, and who
:'edit and put it in the nganga or in a secret knows what else.
People come from Nature, and
er. As the sun went down, the life of the so does Obatala.
,would leave him. And at sunset the person The old Lucumis
liked to have their figurines,
dead. I say this because it happens that I their gods, made of
wood. They kept them in the
lot during slave times. barracoon. All those figurines had a big
head.
u~ink about it, the Congos were murder- They were called oche.
The Eleggua was made of
if they killed someone, it was because cement, but Chango and
Yemaya were made of
Was being done to them, too. No one wood, and the carpenters
made them themselves.
339

)n the walls of the rooms they made marks of treat them
different because th kn
. . [ ] ey ew allsaints with charcoal and whitewash. They were re
I1g1on. . . . atio..
~ lines and circles. Even though each was a Ifa man went to a
witch to ask b
. h or help gctti-.t, they said the marks were secret. Those
woman, the w1tc sent him t ·--aa
, b . o get som f:ks kept everything a secret. Today they've
woman s to acco 1f she smoked y e o the
:1ged a lot, but back then, the hardest thing in the tobacco and a
bottle fly tho· ou ground 11p
, se green sf .
world was to get them to trust you. ones, enoug h to make a
powder wh. h ' 'nsioc
'he other religion was Catholicism. It was the woman in water.
That's how t~~ ;~ugave to
oduced by the priests who wouldn't go into seduced. man
barracoons during slavery for love or money. Another treatment
was taking th h
. b" d . . e eartpriests were very neat and tidy. They had a
hummmg ir and gnndmg it into d 1
Jus look that didn't sit well in the barracoons. put it in the
woman's tobacco And _pfow er. Yoa
· 1 you wanted
y were so serious that there were even blacks to make fun of
them, all you had to do was lead

, hung on their every word and obeyed them off to the store for
barley. Any woman would die
1e letter. They learned the catechism, and then of shame on
account of that barley because
r would read it to the others. With all the would put a little
where she was going to sit a._
·ds and the prayers. Those were the house and no sooner than it
touched her behind,
es, and they met with the other slaves, the field woman would
begin to break wind. That
es, in the bateyes. They came to be the priests' sight to see-
those women fart ing with their
,sengers. Truth is, I never learned that doctrine all powdered up.
mse I did not understand it at all. I don' t think The old blacks
entertained themselves with
house slaves did either but because they were kind of nonsense.
When they were over sixty,
efined and so well-treated, they became Chris- stopped working
in the fi elds. Though, truly,
.s. The household slaves got consideration never knew their real
age. But it happened that
n the masters. I never seen a severe punish- black man got tired
and set himself apart, then
it for a one of them. When they were sent to overseers said he
was ready to be a doorman. 'n.
fields to cut cane or take care of the pigs, they they put that old
man at the gates of the b
ended to be sick and didn't work. That's why or at the pig sty,
where the big litters were
l slaves didn't want to see them at all, not even duced. Or, if not
that, he helped the women iD
painting. Sometimes they went to the barra- kitchen Some of
them had their conucos,
n to visit with a family member. And they took they sp~nt their
time gardening. Doing those ·

k fruits and 'taters for the master's house. I gave them time for
their witchcraft. They
't know if the slaves made gifts from their punished or paid
much attention to. But thcr
ucos or if the house slaves just took them. A lot to be quiet and
obedient. That's for sure.[.· .J
•roblems with fighting in the barracoons were One should
respect religions-even
th
,ed by them. The men arrived and wanted to you might not be
much of a believer. In _ ose
a behevel',
and fool around with the women. That 's even the most clever
man was f. tbll
15
,n the worst pushing and shoving began. I was Spaniards were
all believers. The proo t
· d Santa An3 3
bably twelve years old, and I figured out the the feast days of
San Diego an The
ile mess. there was no work. The mill took a res~ It
~here were other tensions, too. For example, ers were cold and
the fields were ~esert~e ·
The pnests
veen the Congo witch doctor and the Christ- you t~ink of a
sanctduary. Y· They prayed
there was no getting along. One was good and mornmg and
starte to pra d"dn't t I
other bad. That still goes on in Cuba. The long time I learned
little. 1aJmoS er

· . , I've nev
umi and the Congo don't get along either. attention. And 1t s
because Th
. ·nals even.
Y bickered over saints and witchcraft. The only priests. Some
were cnmi ' "th th
d slept w1
s who didn 't have troubles were the old timers pretty white
women an . They n-
.__,1
n Africa. They were special, and you had to were both lecherous
and pwus.
A NIGHT OF UMBANDA
called him a godchild or a nephew. They even look at you. A lot
of Spaniards and Canary
under their robes. They never said, "This Islanders are like that,
not the Galicians.
Priests and lawyers were sacred in that period'd."
kept track of the blacks. If a woman gave of time. They were
highly respected because of
bad to call for the priest before the baby their titles. Even a
university degree was some-
days old. If she didn't, a serious com- thing special. Blacks were
none of these things,
lodged with the owner of the mill. That least of all priests. I

never seen a black priest. That
all the children were Christians. was for the whites, and the
descendants of the
apriest passed by, you had to say to him, Spaniards.
essing, father." Sometimes they didn't
141. A Night of Umbanda
the excerpt below, Lindsay Hale, Ph.D. in anthropology
(University of Texas, 1994),
"bes a ceremony he attended while doing research in Brazil in
1991. He supplies the fol-
·ng contextual orientation:
pretos velhos-literally "old blacks"-are of central importance to
Umbanda ritual.
· to be the spirits ofAfrobrazilian slaves, the pretos velhos are
revered for their wisdom,
ness, and empathy; millions ofBrazilians have sought their
advice and spiritual inter-
tion for problems ranging from illness to marital difficulties to
loss of employment or
·ness setbacks. And many Umbandistas, especially those who
identify themselves as
brazilians, feel an ancestral connection with the pretos velhos
and equate the spirits'
· of suffering in slave times with their own contemporary
experiences ofracial and class
tice.
n the Saturday night that falls closest to May 13, Umbanda
centers throughout Rio per-

the festa dos pretos velhos, the feast of the old slaves. The date
commemorates the
Iabolition of slavery in Brazil in 1888. The following vignette
(1991) comes from the
ual celebration of the pretos velhos at an Umbanda center that
places particular
hasis on its Afrobrazilian heritage.
y may this ceremony be considered profoundly spiritual? Does
it share any of the char-
. ·cs of Catholic or Protestant Christianity? Is there a spiritual
dimension to Jorge's
· nal response to the somber presence ofthe hungry
Afrobrazilians at the ceremony?
ee o'clock in the morning. I was tired, over the sheets, and there
were big clay pots full of
rthe refreshing cool of the night. Jorge food-com, okra stew
with peppers and shrimp,
old, a successful hydraulics engineer, boiled eggs, bananas,
papayas, pineapples,
le beginnings in Rio] and I stood near oranges, even some
grapes (an expensive delicacy,
'Watching as about thirty of the medi- imported from Chile) ,
bean fritters, fish, yams,
in trance and all dressed as old slaves, rice, an enormous steel
pot of black beans. The
little stools around a big rectangle of food had been brought
down from outside in a

on the ground. Leaves were strewn joyous procession as the
drummers played and
Y Hale, vignette provided to editors for inclusion in this
anthology.
341
one sang African words of which very few because they
remember ho h
the literal meanings. The old slaves circled they cry because we
reme;bt ey suff"ecli
30d several times, in a hobbling, shuffling them this out oflove.
They c frer thern Incl
e, ry om p · bent over on their canes, shaking with from
happiness. They cry be ain,
cause th . And then they sat to partake of the spiritual ey
1,..._.,_ •
are free, not slaves like they
were Thce of the food (being spirits, the old slaves do food, all
we need. · at wt
,hysically consume the food). They seemed Jorge's voice was
cracking b'
in memories, their eyes were far away. And silent with a lump
in my throat aH It and I
I noticed several of them were quietly weep- . h . e went
t hmgs ave really changed We' fr OIL · re eel W,
and daughters of Africa have plenty• Th· e

urned to Jorge. Jorge, at the time in his vigor- changed, right?
Jorge looked at m · dlllp
. e, an arly sixties, prized his African roots. Samba his
drew mme to look out at the better th . . an 100-.eligion were
big in his life. Jorge, I said, the pIe out there s1ttmg on the
benches . th ~
h aves are crying. Why are they crying? He put . . c in e
ence, wa1tmg 1or t e old slaves to finish t,aln-
,d on my shoulder and leaned close. They're the spiritual
essence of the food. Most --.
.. h g, my gringo, because they're remembering. were
regu1ar v1s1tors to t e center. Most I could
.vhen they were in Africa, they never were fr~m their clothing
were poor; many were too,
ry. There was always plenty, and they were ~hm. Here they
were, at three o'clock in the mar.
When our ancestors were brought over mg; they had sat on
those benches for hoW'I. To
-those ancestors we represent as old slaves celebrate their
ancestors, yes, but when their
hese-the worst thing about their lives was ancestors had their
fill , they would get theirs. 1
unger. Even worse than the beatings, you feast of good, good
food, protein and vitamim
·er from those. But the hunger was always and fats and fibers
which comes very rarely far
. The food was terrible, just enough to keep people in their
circumstances. Yes, my griJIID
alive from one day to the next, sometimes friend, Jorge went on,
his arm now on my fir

hat. When they dreamed of freedom, of a shoulder, holding me
close, things have chanpcl
life, they dreamed of food. So they see this, but things have not
changed so very much at aD.
)oks to them like heaven, like home. They cry
142. Catholic Mass and Candomble in Bahia
Kathleen de Azevedo, born in Rio de Janeiro, has taught English
for over a decade at Skyline
College in California. Her account (1997) of Catholic and
Candomble services in Sao
Salvador, Bahia, suggests the intense yet easy religiosity
ofBrazilians in the suffering nor~h-
east section of their country. She describes a Catholic Mass, an
ex-voto devotion (loving
depictions of miracles restoring health after sicknesses and
accidents), a popular cult of a
"martyr-saint" and a Candomble ceremony.
Her report portrays several significant aspects ofpopular
Brazilian religiosity: (1 ) Some0~
those who "followed the Mass with familiar ease" are revealed
to be unabashed devotees ~
Oxala. What does this dual commitment indicate about Brazilian
understanding of reltf
0rd 0gion? (2) Some believe in miracles and express that belief
in ex-voto devotion to Our ~
1
the Good End (Outcome). What is the relation of that devotion
to that of Babalu-Aye.

7
:E: Kathleen de Azevedo, "True Believers," Brazzi! Magazine,
April 1997, 24, http://www.brazzil.com/pZ
4
aPr9 .blJII
;ed on I 0/07 /05). Reprinted by permission ofBrazzi IMagazine.
CATHOLIC MASS AND CANDOMBLE IN BAHIA
some "canonize" Anastacia the Slave as "martyred-saint." What
does this suggest about
brazilian perception ofthe Catholic Church in Brazil? (4)
Participants in the ceremony,
tever the level of their involvement, leave with a feeling of
cleansing, renewal, well-
g, and joy. How might these emotions compare with those that
might be felt by
olics after attending Mass?
at are the similarities between the Catholic Mass and the
Candomble ceremony? How
are Azevedo' s final comments about Brazilian religiosity being
"the glory of three conti-
ts" and her remaining remarks about the inevitable joining of
"the white of the
harist and the white ofOxala's robe"? What is the significance
ofthe "white"?
Bonfim, a large crowd for Friday Mass
0 aisles and doorways. I stood in back of
and scanned the heads, a sea of morena

·ety so Brazilian: tight oiled curls, free-
waves, straight course manes. Black men
en dressed in white, took the empty seats
e altar. These seats used to be reserved
ealthy, but times have changed. Now in
the standing-room Mass, the congrega-
these seats vacant on purpose. It was hot.
ive murmur of the Gloria mingled with
flutter of missals. The worshippers in
llowed the mass with familiar ease; the
thes boldly displayed their devotion to
e most powerful Yoruban deity of the
orixd are worshipped by practitioners of
hie, the African-Brazilian religion of
ere are many theories of its origin, but
· f is that mankind sprang from a single
, and some of the descendants achieved
which enabled them to control natural
ch as disease, thunder, and the oceans.
cestors with special powers make up the
d their spiritual energy, or axe, enters
ntemporary descendants during a ceremo-
ce. [...]
orixa and the saints were honored side by
gradually taking on the identity of the
he official laws forbade the practice of
hle, and in an act of resistance that for-
ed Brazilian culture, the faithful "hid"

in the identity of the saints, and contin-
icing their African religion at will. For
• Oxala is often portrayed wearing white
and a silver crown. Oxala's reputation
beauty, purity and as the creator of man
syncretize him to Jesus Christ/the Lord ofBonfim.
When the Portuguese placed O Menino Jesus
dressed in a white gown and small imperial crown
on their altars, it was as if master and slave ironi-
cally spoke in almost the same spiritual tongue.
Historical habits don't survive without present
need. Worshippers don't necessary choose
between Christ and Oxala, on the contrary, the
two deities are often worshipped together, their
divine forces combined. It is a way to "cover your
bases" so to speak. Brazil has endured a history of
political instability and poverty. The belief in
divine intervention, common to both Catholicism
and the Candomble, often provides spiritual sus-
tenance to fragile lives. [ ...]
The patience of many here put me to shame.
The ex-voto room at the side of the main church is
an example of this faith. This room, sweetened
with the resin smell of incense, filled my ears with
pleadings and prayers. On the ceiling hung the ex-
votos, molded plastic arms and feet and heads and
hearts, translucent and yellow-offered by faith-
ful parishioners whose prayer for cure had been
answered. The walls of this chapel were covered
with photos and with testimonials on slips of
paper thanking Senhor do Bonfim for His mira-

cles.[ ...]
The portrayal of suffering is prominent in
Brazil's churches, but oftentimes, the torment of
slavery remains in the periphery. In the cobble-
stone square of the Pelourinho [a whipping post
for slaves] stands the Igreja Nosso Senhor do
Rosario dos Pretos [Church of Our Lord of the
Rosary of the Blacks] painted in bright porcelain
blue. The church was built by blacks for blacks. I
stepped into a late afternoon Mass. The congrega-
tion clapped and sang to music belting out of an
343
http://www.brazzil.com/pZ4aPr9
1
t
XANGO AND THE HOLY GHOST
the sign of the cross. Remarkably, the munion. He was
gregarious, if not a bit jolly. I
y-eyed danced so gracefully, while thrash- wondered what he
did during the day when he was
d shuddering and sinking down onto their not functioning as a
pai de santo. Outside, voices
The old equede caught the celebrants before coming from the
lighted houses on the hill tinged
opped and eased them down. One of the the cool and quiet
evening.
beautiful lean woman, collapsed with her The practice of

Candomble and Catholicism
ing forward; her turban slipped off, let- varies between
Brazilians. Some ignore the
ose beautiful thick wavy hair. An old African element
completely. Others see the
gently picked her up, and pulled her locks African religion as a
source of identity, resistance
om her sweaty neck, then helped her to the and liberation. In the
case of Candomble, I saw a
The more lucid celebrants looked at each joy that is a part of
worship. The strength and
owingly and murmured the names ofvar- drama of these two
religions make the spirituality
. s. The pervasive drums and singing had found in Brazil
unique. In a sense, the religious
ge ability to grow on me, and though I history of Europe and
Africa came together and
ed un-tranced, I felt cleansed. formed a third religion in the
New World. The
ceremony ended as everyone returned to a glory of three
continents!
state. They looked happy, relieved, their No wonder the white
of the Eucharist and the
iny with sweat. They stroked each other's white of the Oxala' s
robe could not help but come
dembraced. As people left the terreiro, the together in
celebration of misery and hope,
santo stood at the door with the bags of enslavement and
freedom, and death and resur-
and handed each one a roll, a bit like com- rection.

143. Xango and the Holy Ghost
ther Iverem, journalist, author, and poet, is founder and editor
of SeeingBlack.com, a
Web site dedicated to the black perspective. The following brief
excerpt concludes her 2001
article on Candomble.
Consider carefully Iverem 's final sentence, especially the
phrase "the Holy Ghost . .. same
African spirit." Might the Candomble Xango indeed be
considered the Christian Holy Ghost?
e return to Opo Afonja [a Candomble her or kissing her hand.
When the dance reaches a
und], again wearing white, for the Xango crescendo, some of
the members get possessed by
The main house for ceremonies is packed. the spirit and go into
a trance. These people eat
d women are separated on opposite sides fire-Xango is the god
of fire. They pass a bowl of
seating area. The women from our group fire from head to head.
or squeeze into the upper rafters on the It reminds me of my
childhood growing up in
's side. The members of the terreiro pro- the Church of God in
Christ [a Black Pentecostal
by Xango dance in a circular motion denomination]. Those folks
got the holy ghost.
the center of the floor in wide white skirts, These people tonight
in Bahia are possessed by
accentuated with bright fabric. Many stop Xango. But it looks
like the same spirit, the same
e honor to the spiritual leader of the com- African spirit, with a
different name in a different

Mae [Mother] Estella, by kneeling before place on the globe.
Esther Iverem, "Land of the Orishas: Candomble in Bahia,"
SeeingBlack.com (April 9, 2001); http://www.seeing
lll/x040901 /orishas.shtml. Reprinted by permission of Esther
lverem, author, edito r, and publisher of
ck.com.
345
:tric organ. [ . .. ] In a courtyard off to the side
the church, I found the shrine of Anastacia
rava (Anastacia the Slave). The weathered pic-
e painted on tiles showed Anastacia Escrava
h her mouth strapped in a muzzle. Small jars of
N"ers had been set at [the] foot of the picture
Ismall candles burned in her honor. Anastacia,
Angolan princess, was brought to Rio as a slave
l became the mistress of her white master.
1en his wife found out of the affair, she had
1stacia "silenced" with a ceramic disk secured
1 leather strap. This form of torture eroded the
uth which led to starvation. Anastacia is sancti-
1, though not considered a "saint." In other
rds, many followers regard her as holy and
m miracles on her behalf, but she has not been
.onized by the Catholic church. Nevertheless,
1stacia's attempt to voice her oppression and
martyrdom became an inspiration to other
:ks who pay their respects.
To get a sense of the African voice, I needed to
J away from the churches and look to the ter-
·os around Salvador, where Candombie cele-

.tes black heritage and the vigor of their
nmunity. [ ... ]
From outside, the terreiro, was much like other
111 red brick homes; a small iron gate opened to
orch where everyone removed their shoes. The
;er terreiros have several rooms, with the peji, or
1r, being in one room, and the dancing taking
ce in the adjoining barraciio. Many poorer
nmunities have the peji and dancing in one
a. This terreiro was one small oblong room.
1ged white crepe paper flags covered the ceil-
. The men and women were separated and
tructed to sit on the benches alongside two
ls, facing each other. Two conga drums stood
ne end of the room near the front door. On the
er end, the peji was covered with vases of flow-
a statue of the Virgin Mary, a brown bottle of
:er, ceramic dishes and paper bags of bread.
Iden in every peji are the stones which con-
1ed the axe, the spirit of the orixd.
The ia6s, the young women who have been ini-
ed into the religion, the "brides of the gods,"
eted each other before the ceremony. They
re white lacy blouses, colorful graceful skirts
swept just above their ankles, and scarves
tightly wrapped around their h d
the dark bold beauty of their fu~; ts, einphasizii,g
ful cheekbones. Three elderly w aces and gra~
. omen th ._.
moved with confidence as they pl ' e equ,,1_
aced th · .·---,

on the young women's shoulde .. e1r ~
. rs, giving d .The equedes act hke priests supe • . a VJce. . ,
rvis1ng d
tectmg the ceremony. an Pro-
. A large man with strikingly white skin
his way through the crowd a bit du . Wofked
1
front of the altar, and covered hi· °;st Y, ~elt in
s ,ace with his
hands. Two young men drumme
' rs, set th
selves at the congas and their fin h' ern.
. gers Lt th
leather, rollmg out a rhythm. The three d e eque es 111together
near the drums. One by one th
· , b , e young
iaos reverent y 1 owed low to the grou d .i. _
'C n at UICIde ers ,eet, brought their hands to thei·r 1ips, ·
then.
with the same hand stroked their own hai if . . h ru
anomtmg t emselves. With the same motion th
'd hpa1 respects to t e drums. I~
With the drums' constant rhythm, the younger
women began dancing gently, gracefully lifting
their elbows so their arms helped to undulate their
ribcages. The tall man rose from his meditation,
and started dancing. I recognized him to be the

babalorixd, more commonly called the pai dt
santo, the spiritual leader of the Candomble. He
stamped his feet and lunged forward, hooted and
whirled around, his dark loose curls flopping over
his eyes and the sweat flinging off his skin. Mean-
while, a young man who had been sitting in the
sidelines began to waver, his eyes half-closed. Sud-
denly he jolted up. An equede led him to the floor.
He gave another jerk then began spinning, el~-
gantly bent forward and sweeping the air with his
curved arm. He stopped, dazed and the old
woman gently guided him back to his seat.
. , . d went toThe babalonxa stopped dancmg an . ds,
one of the young ia6s, took her face into his_hand·
and chanted a short incantation. Othe~s, in~!ued
ing the practitioners sitting in the sidelines, in as
up and he cradled their faces and blessed the':nd
well. The pai de santo picked up_a small_b~~d by
lifted him high. The little one gnnned, uc
the crepe paper fringe on the ceiling. 'ffallin8
The ia6s began slipping into trances a~ i thefS
· · while 0
asleep, some nodded back resistmg, druJIIS-
istentlet themselves be taken by the pers . others
People broke out singing samba songs,
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144. Santeria
The charts below use the Spanish version of the names for the
orishas (seconda
ry gods)
rev~red _by the ~oru~~n Afri~ans wh_o were brought to Cuba
and ~uerto Rico and who
maintained their religious beliefs during and after enslavement.
Their religion, called S
teria, ulti":ately spread to o~hers in t~e Caribbea~,. and is very
closely related to the pr::
ously considered Candomble ofBrazil. (The Brazilian
Portuguese versions of the names f
0
the orishas differ slightly.)
Omitted from the charts is Olodumare, who may be understood
as prime mover, ultimat
source, first cause, designer ofall that exists, neither created nor
begotten. Within him ar:
many different facets or persons, one ofwhom, Olofi, god on
earth, serves as humanity's per-
sonal god who is worshipped. For believers in Santeria, "Jesus
Christ is the mask of Olofi"
(De la Torre).
How do the Santeria commandments compare with the biblical
commandments of the
ancient Hebrews? Do they suggest that both societies had
similar needs?
What does the Greco-Roman-Yoruban equivalency chart
indicate about human culture

and religion?
Consult the next chart, which delineates the actual function of
the Yoru ban orishas. Are
they indeed equivalent to Western culture's well-known Greco-
Roman deities?
To be able to judge the equivalencies of the orishas and the
Catholic saints (last chart)
knowledge ofthe lives, legends, and attributes of those saints is
necessary.
The Commandments
1. You shall not steal.
2. You shall not kill, except [in] self-defense.
3. You shall not eat the flesh of humans.
'1. You shall live in peace with your neighbors.
5. You shall not covet your neighbor's posses-
sions.
6. You shall not use the name of your God in
vain.
7. You shall honor your mother and father.
8. You shall not ask for more than what I have
provided, and you shall be content with your
fate.
9. You shall neither fear death nor commit sui·
cide.
10. You shall keep and respect my laws.
11. You shall teach my commandments to your

children.
Comparison ofYoruba Mythology
to Greek and Roman
YorubaFunction Greek Roman
Obatala Ruler of the Gods Zeus Jupiter
The Gods' Messenger Hermes Mercury Eleggua
OrunlaGod of Divination Apollo Faunus
God of Thunder Gebeleizis Fulgora Chang6
OchosiGod of the Hunt Artemis Diana
ids Mich-, ..,.i
nd Riorn;anY• GDURCE: Miguel A. De La Torre, Santeria:
The Beliefs and Rituals ofa Growing Religion in A merica (Gra
:ambridge, U .K.: Eerdmans, 2004), 40, 46, 48-49, 52, 54-55,
124-25. © 2004 Wm. B. Eerdmans Pubhshing
apids, Michigan. Reprinted by permission of the publisher; all
rights reserved.
SANTERIA
ction Greek Roman Yoruba
ofWar
of Healing
of the Sea
dess of Love
Ares
Asklepios
Poseidon

Aphrodite
Mars
Aesculapius
Neptune
Venus
Oggun
Babalu-Aye
Yemaya
Oshun
of the Underworld
of Nature
Hades
Pan
Pluto
Inuus
Oya
Osain
of the Volcano
of Agriculture
Hephaestus
Demeter
Vulcan
Ceres
Aganyu
Oko

of Science Athena Minerva Inle
of Wifely Role Hera Juno Obba
venlyTwins Kastor & Polydeukes Castor & Pollux Ibeyi
Has Power Over Patron of Personal Corresponding
Characteristics Catholic Saint
All things pertain- Fatherhood Regal; wise; peace- Our Lady of
Ran-
ingtohuman ful; pure; serene; som
heads; bones; all patient
things white
Crossroads; fate Doorways; messen- Playful; unscrupu-
Anthony of Padua;
gers; tricksters; jus- lous; clever; mis- Martin of Porres;
tice chievous; childlike Benito, the Holy
Infant of Prague; or
Holy Child of
Atocha
Human destiny The oracles oflfa Wise; sagacious Francis
ofAssisi; St.
Phillip; St. Joseph
Fire; thunder and Revenge upon Passionate; sensual; St.
Barbara; St.
lightning; semen enemies risk-taking; arro- Mark; St. Jerome;
gant; prone to vio- St. Elijah; St. Expe-
Jenee ditus; St.
Bartholomew

Hunting; jails; Those seeking legal Impartial; quick- St.
Norbert; St.
courtrooms justice witted; alert Albert; St. Hubert;
St. James
War; employment; All human effort Militant; belliger- St. Peter;
St. James
hospitals; minerals; ent; hardworking; (in Santiago); St.
iron and other strong John the Baptist;
metals St. Paul; the
Archangel Michael
Influence of the Orishas and Corresponding Catholic Saints
~47 46
AFFIRMING AFRO-LATIN AMERICAN IDENTITY
Orisha Has Power Over Patron of Personal
Characteristics
Correspond·
Catholics _lllg
a1111
Babahi-Aye Smallpox and other Beggars; the sick;
illnesses the disabled
Gentle; compas-

sionate; humble
Lazarus
Yemaya Ocean Womanhood;
motherhood
Maternal; digni-
fied; nurturing
Oshun Gold; rivers; lower
abdomen; fertility
Eros; love; mar-
riage
Seductive Our Lady of Char.
tty
Oya Cemeteries; death; Niger River in
wind; human respi- Africa; ancestors
ratory system
Tempestuous; vio-
lent; sensual;
authoritarian
Osain Nature; forests;
herbs
Houses Solitary; rational;
chaste
St. Sylvester; St.
John; St. Ambrose;
St. Anthony Abad;

St. Joseph; St. Ben-
ito
Aganyu Volcanoes; earth-
quakes
Those with high
blood pressure and
fevers
Fiery; violent; mus-
cular
St. Christopher;
Archangel Michael
(in Santiago); St.
Joseph
Oko Agriculture Delicate matters Peacemaker St. Isidro
Inle Fertility ofwater to
produce crops
Fishermen; healing
of human illnesses
Studious; scientific;
calculating
Angel Raphael
Obba Oba river Human ears and
bone structure
Neglected wives;
virtuous; gullible

St. Rita of Casia; 5
Catalina of Siena;
the Virgin of Car·
men
Ibeyi Good luck; child-
hood illnesses
Children Innocence Sts. Cosmas and
Damian; Sts.
Crispin and
Crispinian; Sis.
Justa and Rufina
145. Affirming Afro-Latin American Identity
·1 the very last decades of the twentieth century, Latin
American nations virtually
'ed the role ofAfro-Latin Americans in their history and
discriminated against them in
reas oflife. In countries where their presence was profound-
Brazil, Cuba, the Domini-
Republic, coastal Colombia, Panama-they were virtually written
out of national his-
(save Cuba after the revolution) and did not appear in school
textbooks. For black
·n Americans, to "get ahead" meant to ignore the supposed
ignominy ofslavery and "act
te," marry lighter, and shun black relatives and friends; in other
words, to deny black or
-Latin American identity.
elania Cueto Villaman, sister in the Apostolado order, and

Emigdio Cuesta Pino, a
·me priest in the Society of the Divine Word, address this
historical reality, which has
lted in widespread ignorance of the achievements of slave
culture, of the heroism of
rrones, maroons, and their palenques and quilombos, and of the
massive contribu-
by Afro-Latin Americans to the colonial and national
economies.
ow do Cueto and Cuesta, in the first halfof their article, add to
the above description of
plight ofAfro-Latin Americans? How do they characterize the
church's acknowledgment
treatment ofAfro-Latin Americans, historically and in the
present? When society at
edoes actually recognize the Afro-Latin American, how do
Cueto and Cuesta character-
that recognition? How do the authors determine that "the right
to be different is a man-
from Jesus"? Does their brief treatment of Jesus and the Gospels
suggest they are
7.gating familiar currents?
· g our identifies as Afro-Latin Ameri- with respect to the
Church and religious life as
us men and women is a path that needs instances that allow us
to recognize ourselves and
rtaken. We need time to reflect on con- give us more elements
to build an Afro-Latin
are part of religious life but do not affirm American religious
life. As such, we believe that it

tity as Afro-Latin American men and is necessary to present the
fundamentals of all reli-
e can begin discussing elements, recog- gious life, referring
particularly to Jesus in whom
need to find a way of talking about our we can understand
fraternity, apostolic work and
a balanced way that identifies, affirms the meaning we try to
give our lives and our com-
s us as black men and women, religious munities.[ . . . ]
Women descendents ofAfricans. This is a The black population
has never fully accepted
at is just now under construction. the fact that our ancestors
were slaves, but it [slav-
ery] has influenced us in a significant way. It will
Introduction take time for black men and women to become
aware of this, shake off this historic weight andgin with some
historical considerations,
correct the negative vision that has befallen us inthat our own
history will let us know
order to [be] seen objectively in Latin Americae and help us
identify a profile for our
and the Caribbean. e also consider some aspect of history
igdio Cuesta Pino and Melania Cueto Villaman, quoted in
"Elements to Reaffirm our Afro-Latin American
Religious Life," Latin American Documentation 32, no. 3
(January/February 2002): 20-26. Originally published in
"Elementos para reafirmar nuestra identidad en la vida religiosa
como afroamericanos y afroamericanas," CLAR 4
t, 2001): 55-67. Reprinted by permission of CLAR
(Confederaci6n Latinoamericana de Religiosos [Colombia]).
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