Has voodoo been misjudged?






Often times when we hear the word Voodoo we think that it is this dark religion that sacrifices animals and prays to the devil. For myself, I believed this and did not try to learn the truth about the religion called Voodoo. Regine Romaine who had traveled on a pilgrimage discovering the religion and tracking its origins back to in Benin discovered a tradition that is nothing like what we have been taught. In Benin you can see the community coming together, keeping the traditions of their ancestors alive. An interesting part that I read was about their beliefs. They live in peace and harmony with life and nature and they believe that no bad deeds will go unpunished. An estimated 40% of the Benin's population practices voodoo, 27% practice Christianity and 22% are Muslim. While reading the article it explained how the practice arrived in the Americas. When slaves were brought over the only thing they could hold onto was their religion. If they were caught practicing they would be punished by slave masters but this did not stop them from practicing. This only made it more important and more of a priority to keep alive.  It was very interesting to read this articles and learn more about the Voodoo practice and see what it is not what we thought it was all about. Outsides came and saw this strange practice and turned it into something that we should fear. I am glad that despite this young people are going back to their roots and embracing their culture.


 http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-41048840

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