Voodooist attack at ceremony for Haiti victims

[kathy]

Voodooist attack at ceremony for Haiti victims

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - Angry crowds in a seaside slum attacked a group of Voodoo practitioners Tuesday, pelting them with rocks and halting a ceremony meant to honor victims of last month's deadly earthquake.

Voodooists gathered in Cite Soleil where thousands of quake survivors live in tents and depend on food aid. Praying and singing, the group was trying to conjure spirits to guide lost souls when a crowd of Evangelicals started shouting. Some threw rocks while others urinated on Voodoo symbols. When police left, the crowd destroyed the altars and Voodoo offerings of food and rum.

"We were here preparing for prayer when these others came and took over," said Sante Joseph, an Evangelical worshipper in Cite Soleil, near the capital's port, who joined the angry crowd in a concrete outdoor civic center.

Some Voodoo practitioners have said they've converted to Christianity for fear they will lose out on aid or a belief that the earthquake was a warning from God.
"Much of this has to do with the aid coming in," said Max Beauvoir, a Voodoo priest and head of a Voodoo association. "Many missionaries oppose Voodoo. I hope this does not start a war of religions because many of our practitioners are being harassed now unlike any other time that I remember."

"There's absolutely a heightened spiritual conflict between Christianity and Voodoo since the quake," said Pastor Frank Amedia of the Miami-based Touch Heaven Ministries who has been distributing food in Haiti and proselytizing "We would give food to the needy in the short term but if they refused to give up Voodoo, I'm not sure we would continue to support them in the long term because we wouldn't want to perpetuate that practice. We equate it with witchcraft, which is contrary to the Gospel.

Voodoo, or Vodou as preferred by Haitians, evolved in the 17th century when the French brought slaves to Haiti from West Africa. Slaves forced to practice Catholicism remained loyal to their African spirits in secret by adopting Catholic saints to coincide with African spirits, and today many Haitians consider themselves followers of both religions. Voodoo's followers believe in reincarnation, one God and a pantheon of spirits. Voodoo leaders say that although they do not believe in evil spirits, some followers pray for the spirits to do evil."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35541950/ns ... arthquake/

[kathy]

This is an English translation...

Haiti: a voodoo ceremony contested the voodoo chief promises "war"

Max Beauvoir, supreme head of Haitian voodoo, promised Wednesday "war" after an attack yesterday by evangelical Christians against a voodoo ceremony organized to commemorate the victims of the earthquake of January 12.

According to the Haitian police, a pastor urged his followers to attack the ceremony Tuesday in the slum of Cite Soleil in Port-au-Prince. The crowd then threw stones at the followers of voodoo.

Rosemond Aristide, police inspector in Cité Soleil, said he had then talked to the pastor and that it had agreed to leave now proceed voodoo ceremonies.

Mr. Aristide has not provided further details and did not explain why no arrests had taken place after the attack.

"It will be war, open war," responded Max Beauvoir, told AFP at his home, which is also his temple on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince.

"It's unfortunate that they feel obliged to go to war when everyone suffers. But if that's what they want, they will," he said about the authors this attack.

The religious tensions are exacerbated in Haiti, the evangelical Protestants but also other religious groups seeking to recruit after the earthquake that killed more than 222,500 dead according to a latest official death toll.

According to Max Beauvoir, hundreds of evangelical Protestants, who were hired for the occasion, others, attacked the voodoo ceremony, causing many injuries among the participants.

The number of voodoo practitioners in one form or another is estimated at about half of the Haitian population, with 9 million people, although many at the same time follow the tenets of other religions.

The voodoo religion is deeply rooted in the country. A voodoo priest named Boukman was behind the uprising of slaves in Haiti in the late eighteenth century.

http://www.lenouvelliste.com/article.ph ... 2010-02-24

[kathy]

Unfortunately, the attack was caught on camera for the world to see:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXdCSLVu-ZY

[kathy]

As a Haitian Christian, I am embarrassed to see how these "so called Christians" reacted! What they did does not follow the teachings of Christ.

I thought that we all had learned something from the 3 Day National Prayer....but by looking at this video, we unfortunately did not.

[Dunord]

What is this a 'born again' manifestation? Pat Robertson and Usama bin Laden will be pleased their message is being heard.
Should not these "Christians" be more worried about the living and than the dead?

[Gelin*]

These people violated the law of the land on freedom of conscience. If they are connected to any church at all, it shouldn't be a problem to track them down and find their leader. It's one thing to disagree with vodou (which I do), but it's quite another thing to disrupt their apparently peaceful meeting. One has no right to do that and I don't think the country can or should go to another campaign of 'rejete'.

gelin

[Gelin*]

..."There's absolutely a heightened spiritual conflict between Christianity and Voodoo since the quake," said Pastor Frank Amedia of the Miami-based Touch Heaven Ministries who has been distributing food in Haiti and proselytizing "We would give food to the needy in the short term but if they refused to give up Voodoo, I'm not sure we would continue to support them in the long term because we wouldn't want to perpetuate that practice. We equate it with witchcraft, which is contrary to the Gospel.

This pastor Frank Amedia seems confused about the Gospel. If he means the Gospel of Jesus-Christ, he is partly wrong; but there are other gospels out there....

gelin

[kathy]

I hope that a Haitian pastor will stand up and speak out against this attack becuz things could get out of control...and that is one thing Haiti doesn't need now....

[Leonel Jean-Baptiste]

Not Surprised at all. I always believed that every" Monotheist" Religion is based on violence... Take the invasion of the "COLONS" with the Bible and Religion...
In the Great book, it advocates violence towards Non-Believers (Canaanites)etc.
In the New Testament, take psalm 108 or 109 for instance.
Not surprised at all.
Leonel

[Tayi]

I always believed that every" Monotheist" Religion is based on violence...

Naive overstatement. I think there are instances of violence in the Good Book, but not to the point of saying the whole religion is based on violence as if violence were the cause or essence of the religion. If it were true then you would be shocked by the fact that the religion can produce the Mother Teresas, the Martin Luther Kings, the Gelins, etc. And yet deep down I do not believe you are shocked at all by these figures. Rather you expect the religion to produce such as these.

In the New Testament, take psalm 108 or 109 for instance.

I think you made an innocent mistake here. The Psalms are in the Old Testament not the New.

Tayi

"Love your enemies!" --some obscure guy a couple thousand years ago said that.

[Leonel Jean-Baptiste]

Oh Great, Tayi is finally back!
You mean to tell me there's a huge difference between the Old and New Testament?
You know, I have not found that "Brotherly Love" which is the base of Christianity!
Personally, Tayi, I think that you and Gelin are different from the other Christians I've met. For, let's look at Pat Robinson, Jerry Falwell and the high percentage of Christians in the USA and elsewhere... Also, let's look at other religious groups such as Muslim, Jewish etc., where is the LOVE?
One thing, they all have in common is: If you're not one of them or if you're an "Infidel", there will no compassion at all... Is this Love?
I have to get back later, Bro.
Leonel

[Aragorn]

What is this a 'born again' manifestation? Pat Robertson and Usama bin Laden will be pleased their message is being heard.
Should not these "Christians" be more worried about the living and than the dead?

You definately have this right!
There is no difference between these evangelical extremists and Islamic fundamentalists like those (thought) to be responsible for 09/11/01 terror attacks.

Eric Rudolph is in prison for committing 1996 terrorist bombing of the Atlanta Olympic Games and another professed Protestant evangelical.

Terrorism is terrorism regardless what religious extremists are perpetrators. These evangelical extremists must be dealt with in the same manner as Osama bin Laden and his Al Queda gang

[jafrikayiti]

Unfortunately, these Christian Talibans are scripturally in the right. Their reaction is part of the Christian tradition, from Abraham to Ratzinger.

A few years ago, on this board, this is how we were addressing the topic:

http://newsgroups.derkeiler.com/Archive ... 00273.html

it is not the Gospel according to Jerry Fallwell, but the Christian Bible that identifies a "chosen people" to whom "god" not only gives the right to steal, plunder other people's property but, he actively involves himself in these Zenglendo acts - such as described in the book of Joshua where the sun was ordered to stop in its course (which is a complete non-sense - but knowing what happened to Galileo for pointing this out, I'll keep quiet) so that Joshua and his gang could complete its assassination campaign against the Amorites whose land they had set their eyes upon. This is after the same "god" is said to have spent energy throwing hailstones from the sky to kill the Amorites.... but somehow, "almighty god himself", Joshua and the gang ran out of time and needed more day light to complete their zenglendo activities.

Until we do our homework and produce enough material that exposes how racist, violent, supertitious and damaging the christian theology and its sects are to the mind of Africans worldwide (Haiti included), we will continue to live these sad outbursts of violence among members of the same family, be it in Haiti, the Sudan, Nigeria or elsewhere.

As robe-wearing pedophiles continue to make long pious prayers while preying with impunity on the most vulnerable among us, can we afford to pray to the same "god" as theirs - with both eyes closed?


Jafrikayiti
"superstition ain't the way! "

[Guysanto]

From: Bob Corbett <corbetre>
Date: Thu, Mar 11, 2010 at 9:14 AM
Subject: Saint-Vil (comment) to prevent escalation of religious violence in Haiti

From: Jean Saint-Vil <jafrikayiti>

On YouTube, I watched this recent violent attack made by Haitian evangelical zealots on a Vodou ceremony.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXdCSLVu-ZY

This is an alarming situation. Bold and respected leaders must immediately step up, condemn these barbaric attacks and help prevent an escalation of this sort of nonsensical violence. Haiti cannot afford a repeat of the racist 1940s "rejete" campaign. Another bloody fight between Eurocentric superstition and Afrocentric superstition will only make more Haitian victims.

Unfortunately, in as much as I am hoping that responsible voices within the Christian community will (sooner rather than too late) rise to condemn the Christian Talibans we see on the above video, I must in all honesty admit that they are 'scripturally in the right'. That is, their reaction is an integral part of the Christian tradition, from Abraham to Pope Benedict - Ratzinger.

A few years ago, on another discussion forum, this is how we were addressing the topic:

http://newsgroups.derkeiler.com/Archive ... 00273.html

Quote:

it is not the Gospel according to Jerry Falwell, but the Christian Bible that identifies a "chosen people" to whom "god" not only gives the right to steal, plunder other people's property but, he actively involves himself in these Zenglendo acts - such as described in the book of Joshua where the sun was ordered to stop in its course (which is a complete non-sense - but knowing what happened to Galileo for pointing this out, I'll keep quiet) so that Joshua and his gang could complete its assassination campaign against the Amorites whose land they had set their eyes upon. This is after the same "god" is said to have spent energy throwing hailstones from the sky to kill the Amorites.... but somehow, "almighty god himself", Joshua and the gang ran out of time and needed more day light to complete their zenglendo activities.

As robe-wearing pedophiles continue to make long pious prayers while preying with impunity on the most vulnerable among us, can we, African survivors of the MAAFA, afford to pray to the same "god" as theirs - with both eyes closed?

I contend that until we do our homework and produce enough material that exposes how racist, violent, superstitious and damaging...the traditional imperialist (Christian in the case of Haiti) theologies and their ethnocentric sects are to the peaceful existence of conquered peoples worldwide, we will continue to live these sad outbursts of violence among the human family, be it in Haiti, the Sudan, Nigeria or elsewhere.

In 2010, can we not conceive a truly civilized and universal god?

Jafrikayiti
"Stevie sings: superstition ain't the way! Boukmann said: "jete vye potre bondye blan yo ki swaf dlo nan je nou. Koute libète ki pale nan kè nou tout!"

www.godisnotwhite.com

[Guysanto]

Jaf, I believe that you were referring to one of the most spirited debates that took place on Ann Pale. The link has changed (multiple times, because of attacks against the site) but the threads have for the most part been faithfully preserved. Check it out:

http://winterludes.net/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=6320

[jafrikayiti]

Guy, mèsi anpil pou detere ou detere koneksyon sa a. Mwen te tonbe sou sa mwen bay pi o a pa aza e mwen pat sonje si se sou soc-culture.haiti osnon sou annpale diskisyon an te fèt. Mwen kontan repase tout braselide ki te fèt ak patisipasyon Empress, Gelin, Leonel elat...

Echanj sa yo itil menm lè volim diskisyon sou fowom nan diminye detanzantan.

Kenbe fèm!


Jaf

[Aragorn]

Jaf, I believe that you were referring to one of the most spirited debates that took place on Ann Pale. The link has changed (multiple times, because of attacks against the site) but the threads have for the most part been faithfully preserved. Check it out:

http://winterludes.net/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=6320

Thank you, Guy. Just had a look-not enough time to read through the many posts, but I responded with what I as able to see in the limited time I had.