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The Dangers of Voodoo

The Dangers of Voodoo Science -The New York Times.

The self-styled anarchist known as the Unabomber, who has been killing and maiming people with package bombs for two decades, explained in a letter to The New York Times in April that: "We would not want anyone to think that we have any desire to hurt professors who study archaeology, history, literature, or harmless stuff like that. The people we are out to get are the scientists and engineers..." "We advocate eliminating industrial society," he wrote. For all the suffering and fear he has spread, the Unabomber poses no more threat to "industrial society" than random bolts of lightning. There is simply no way back. Yet, growing numbers of people distrust the technology on which they depend, and reject the Western scientific tradition that created it. It is a romantic rebellion, led not by the religious fundamentalists who are the traditional foes of science, but by serious academics and writers who regard themselves as intellectuals. 

They range from the environmental extremist Jeremy Rifkin, who sees disaster in every new technology, to a University of Delaware philosophy professor, Sandra Harding, who argues that the laws of physics were constructed to maintain white male dominance. An Afrocentric writer, Hunter Adams, contends that the African people were "the wellspring of creativity and knowledge on which the foundation of all science, technology and engineering rest." Researchers in the Office of Alternative Medicine at the National Institutes of Health espouse psychic healing and homeopathic medicine.

6 Things You Didn't Know About Voodoo

1. There are three main types of voodoo, each drawing their sphere of influence from a different place. West African voodoo is still practiced by around 30 million people, particularly in nations like Ghana and Benin. Rituals and beliefs are extensive, and largely untouched by the outside influences that have shaped other types of voodoo. Louisiana voodoo is a unique brand of voodoo practiced, as its name suggests, mainly in Louisiana and the southeastern United States. Though brought over from West African voodoo, this form as been heavily influenced by the practices of Spanish and French settlers, as well as the Creole population. Haitian voodoo, practiced in Haiti, has been largely shaped by its French influence as well as Christianity.

2. At first glance, it seems that a religion that revolves around spiritual possession, potions, and the worship of ancestors would have little to do with Christianity. However, there are strong parallels; in the case of Louisiana and Haitian voodoo, many Christian traditions, beliefs, and figures have been incorporated into this flexible religion. The spirits are central to the practice of voodoo, and many of the central figures have Christian counterparts. Aida Wedo is a virginal figure of Mary, while Legba, the guardian gatekeeper, is a mirror image of St. Peter. In voodoo, important spirits that believers connect with are called the loa (or lwa); in some locations, these loa and their families can be called by the names of the Catholic saints they represent. In West African voodoo, there is a very Christian belief that there is one supreme god ruling all.

3. The parallels between voodoo and Christianity are so strong that there is no animosity between the two parties, and in many areas, they peacefully coexist. While at one time practitioners who had also been baptized could expect repercussions from the church for partaking in voodoo ceremonies, now priests from both sides are working hand-in-hand to help bring peace and prosperity to Africa, the birthplace of voodoo. In fact, Pope John Paul II has spoken at length about the esteem with which he holds practitioners of voodoo, acknowledging the "fundamental goodness" inherent in their practices, teachings, and beliefs. He even attended a voodoo ceremony in 1993, helping to cement the amicable coexistence of these two seemingly opposite religions.

4. Voodoo dolls are more complicated than they're usually portrayed. A voodoo doll doesn't actually symbolize a person in the respect that what happens to it, happens to the person. Instead, a doll is only associated with the person in question—usually by of the person, or something that was in intimate contact with them, such as a lock of hair (attaching this personification is actually the purpose of the voodoo straight pin usually seen in a voodoo doll, which is commonly believed to be an instrument of pain). Other things are usually added to the doll, and these vary based on the intended purpose. Garlic, flower petals, perfumes, or even money can be added—not as a direct message to the person, but as an appeal to the spirits to open themselves to the doll and the wishes of those involved. The voodoo doll can be used for a huge variety of purposes, and most are benevolent. The voodoo doll in itself is not an evil or dark thing, but, like many religious and secular symbols, it can be made dark who wields it.

5. Marie Laveau is one of the names most commonly associated with voodoo, and consequently, she has become something of a surreal, larger-than-life figure. Even what's known for sure seems debatable. She was said to be born the illegitimate daughter of a Creole plantation owner and his half black, half Native American mistress. Her first marriage ended when her husband disappeared under mysterious circumstances; her second, common-law marriage, however, lasted years and gave her 15 children. One of these children, Marie Laveau II, followed in her mother's footsteps as a voodoo priestess and is thought to be the source of rumors that the elder Laveau lived decades longer than any mortal person should.In addition to counseling those in need and selling gris-gris to everyone in all walks of life, she was also a hairdresser. This allowed her intimate access to some of the most powerful people in New Orleans, who she would counsel while at the same time use to gather secrets and inside information on others in the city, helping to cement her position of relative power. Just how much power Lavaeu had has long been debated, but what can't be debated is that her public performances and rituals elevated voodoo into the public eye. Also beyond debate is her selfless concern for those she shared her city with; her work giving assistance to the homeless, the hungry, and the sick is well documented. Even today, visitors to New Orleans leave offerings at the place where she is supposedly buried and ask for her assistance.

6. Someone who practices voodoo is often accused—especially by Hollywood—of being a powerful person who orders the spirits to do their bidding. That's not the case at all; in fact, the opposite is true. Voodoo practitioners see themselves as servants of the spirits. They don't actually tell the spirits to do anything; they provide and then ask. Voodoo priests and priestesses undergo a long period of training before performing any ritual that opens themselves up to spiritual possession. During these rituals, one of the two spirits that inhabit the body—the —leaves the body so the spirit of a loa can possess it. The ti bon ange is the portion of the spirit that contains the individual and must be protected when the individual is hosting a loa. The other part, the gros bon ange, is a spirit that is shared among all the living.