Lawd Have Mercy

Darling Reader,

(From yesterday: 6/10) Life is bleak here in the 732. :/ Rain rain rain for way too long and its been a bit too chilly for summer.  But great news!  I got a new really cool oldie bike.  My awesome neighbors (super bellicose-so sweet/friendly- burly 60 something-all American with Polish roots-man and his adorable sweet wife) were having a yard sale but gave it to me for FREE! Note: The best things in this life are free. Anyways, my bike is a she.  Her name is Wendy and she's my favorite color.  Check her out chillin on my porch.  But ok, enough about my bike--lets talk about God!  Lol, nice segway right?  ;)

 Religion
I'm really not sure where I stand on this issue and of course, its ok for my opinions and views about it to change.  But right now, if I were to die in a bizarre freak accident like say I was riding my bike in my knee high socks (gunna do this later if the weather permits)  and a house fell from the sky and landed smack dab on top of me, crushing my bones and killing me instantly, I'm not sure if I would go to heaven or hell.  Hell, I'm not even sure if these places exist.  All I do know right now is that my body would be food for the earth and that thought enough makes me content.  I hope worms think I'm yummy and that my body can sustain the life source that has sustained me for so long.

Fun Fact!
Doris Kearns Goodwin told me in a Team of Rivals (brilliant book!) that Abe Lincoln was a deeply religious, philosophical man who tried his best to follow the teachings of Christ but he didn't believe in an afterlife.  Question: Can one be a Christian without believing in heaven or hell?

Guess what reader: by upraising, I share the same religion as Abe Lincoln (one of my heroes). Yay for being Lincoln's twinsy!  Here's how this happened...

As you may know, my nationality is American but my ethnicity is Ghanaian.  Let's jump on a time machine and see my religious genealogy. My mom and dad were born into Christian households, my grandparents were born into Christian households but my great-grandparents, I'm not so sure about.  Actually, I met my great-grandmother on my mother's side last summer when I went to Ghana (she's a centennial but doesn't know her exact age since in her time, women weren't allowed to go to school).  Her name is Abre (literal translation from Twi to English= tired).  And man has she earned this nickname! She's this super cute, gritty old woman who speaks her mind and has an incredible memory but she can't see very well because she has cataracts.  But say that my great-grandmother is exactly 100 years old.  Calculus 3 taught me that this would mean that she was born in 1913.  The country she was born in was known as the Gold Coast, a colony of Great Britain.  From Wikipedia:
"The British Gold Coast was formed in 1867 when the British government abolished the African Company of Merchants and seized privately held lands along the coast. They also took over the remaining interests of other European countries, annexing the Danish Gold Coast in 1850 and the Dutch Gold Coast, including Fort Elmina, in 1872. Britain steadily expanded its colony through the invasion of local kingdoms as well, particularly the Ashanti and Fante confederacies. The Ashanti people had controlled much of the territory of Ghana before the Europeans arrived and were often in conflict with them. They are the largest ethnic community in Ghana. Four wars, the Anglo-Ashanti Wars, were fought between the Ashanti (Asante) and the British, who were sometimes allied with the Fante."  

Yaa Asantewaa: " In 1900 she led the Ashanti rebellion known as the War of the Golden Stool against British colonialism." from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yaa_Asantewaa

So by force, out of necessity, or maybe for funsies, my great-grandmother and all her friends and family adopted the religion of their colonizers. Transcript of what I imagine the conversion conversation went like:

My great-grandmother's father: So you're telling me that way back in the day, in this desert place, a man by the name of Jesus Christ died on a cross, rose to heaven, and then walked the earth again?

British Missionary: (in most comical British accent) Why but of course!  Jesus was the son of God but he stooped down to the level of the common man to save us sinners.  He died but on the third day, he rose again.

My great-grandmother's father:  Ok, I'm not sure why this is more valid than my belief that my ancestors, the animals, and the earth are gods and spirits but alright, I'll go along with it. And in God's eyes, we are both equal and will sit together at a table as brothers in the kingdom of heaven?

British Missionary: Yes, indeed.  You (the black African man) and I  (the white European man) are equal in heaven but here on earth, God has given me the knowledge and the power to rule over you.

My great-grandmother's father:  Seriously dude?

British Missionary: Why but of course.  (flustered) Ok, see here.  If you become a Christian, you can send your kids to the missionary school and they can receive the education that will give them power and I'll also give you a position as a high ranking official in the colony government.  Also, ignorant, foolish African, you need to accept Christ into your heart because if you don't, you'll burn in hell!!

My great-grandmother's father:  Good God!  I've seen the light.  Christ died for my sins and I'm redeemed at last!

British Missionary:  Welcome to the kingdom, my barbaric friend!

And so, compelled by the threat of eternal damnation and the opportunity to make money and rule over others, my great-great grandfather made the leap from heathenism to Christianity! :D  Meanwhile in the northern parts of Ghana where there was great Arab influence, many people practice the teachings of Islam.

 Pentecostalism in Ghana is a force.  When I went, pastors shouting "God's Word"  into megaphones and people praising and rejoicing in the wee hours of the morning was a common sight.  Also, going to church is an activity everyone is really into and people (my cousins and such) would ask me like all the time what church I went to.  People fast and prey often and pastors can make a LOT of money leading congregations.  So for economic reasons, for networking purposes, and as a community this isn't a movement that's disappearing anytime soon.

In Cuba
Surprisingly or unsurprisingly enough, Pentecostalism and other charismatic forms of Protestantism are catching on here on the island as well.  While I was living in Havana, I went to a Pentecostal church with my Cuban mother a couple of times.  The hand clapping, dancing, singing loudly, shouting "Amen, Hallelujah" , people calling each other "Hermana y hermano" (sister and brother), praying out loud, chanting, speaking in tongues, etc that you would instantly notice in any charismatic church in the Bible Belt can be found openly on this island.

Bible Belt=a good chunk of the South

 Ever since the 1990s when Cuba was going through the Special Period--the country's worst economic crisis in recent memory--religion (especially Protestantism) has made a strong come back.  The government amended the constitution pretty recently to acknowledge that the state now has a hands off policy when it comes to religion.  People are free to follow whatever religion floats their boat.  In addition to this growing charismatic Protestantism, the religions or lack of religion people are now/have been practicing include:

1. Santeria: http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/santeria.htm
The black Africans enslaved and forced to work on Cuba's sugar plantations during the slave trade wanted so desperately to retain the religious beliefs and practices of their ancestors (many from the Yoruba in Nigeria) that they continued to worship their gods in the guise of Catholic saints.
Although I didn't get to attend a Santeria event like I planned , believers of this religion are easy to recognize in Havana's streets.  On people's wrists, I noticed the brightly colored bracelets that represent deities like Chango, and women and men who are in the initiation process to become Santeros dress in white from head to toe.  I was once walking to my residency when a man carrying a box walked past me.  I asked him what was in the box and he opened it revealing the cutest baby chicks (about 20)!  I was super excited and while petting a chick, I asked him where he was going with this box of cute little chickities.  "A Santeria event", he replied.  Light bulb goes off in my head: Animal sacrifice.  Boooooooooooo!!!  In another incident, I noticed a turtle missing its head while walking through Centro Habana.  I walked past it once and in disbelief, I turned around to see it again and to snap a picture.  A friend told me she saw a bunch of decapitated turtles lying under a tree.  I understand these animal sacrifices are important parts of the religious practices but nevertheless, its inhumane and animal cruelty--especially considering that turtles are really delicate animals (http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/news-10-most-endangered-turtles?image=0).

For anyone familiar with West African cultural stuff, this is like an I-Spy picture!  

Santeria beads look a lot like waist beads to me! ;)

2. Commonly practiced monotheistic religions
-Islam: My Core Corse professor stated that this is growing faith as a result of  immigration from Middle Eastern countries and some native Cubans are now converting to Islam.  Also, a couple times, I noticed women in hijab (head scarf) walking around.
-Judaism: Cuba has a Jewish community (as discussed in previous posts) that continues to keep this faith and its traditions and practices on the island.

3.  Buddhism
My Cuban-Vietnamese friend had a lot of statues of the Buddha in her house but I didn't get a chance to ask her if she is a practicing Buddhist.

4.  Other religions
I'm sure whatever religion you can think of, someone in Cuba practices some form of it.

5. Absence of religion
I met a lot of atheists who don't believe in God in any form.  Many from the older generation who grew up in the absence of religion as a result of the Communist principles of the Revolution continue living their lives without religion.  


FYI: interesting sources on Cuba's religious freedom.  I noticed that a lot of my info comes from the US government and this is clearly a questionable source of objectivity especially regarding Cuba.  The US and Cuba haven't exactly been the best of chums over the years...but of course, one can't throw out these claims entirely without corroborating this information with other sources.
-http://www.abpnews.com/ministry/organizations/item/8524-more-religious-freedoms-in-cuba-yes-or-no#.UbZWl_m1GAg
-http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/religiousfreedom/index.htm#wrapper
"In Cuba, the Communist Party, through its Office of Religious Affairs, continued to monitor and control most aspects of religious life. Although many religious groups reported reduced interference from the government in conducting services, importing religious materials, receiving donations from overseas, and in traveling abroad, serious restrictions to the freedom of religion remained. The government regularly prevented peaceful human rights activists, including members of the Ladies in White, from attending religious services, and routinely used government-sponsored protest groups to assault or detain them. Before Pope Benedict XVI’s visit, authorities arrested many members of the peaceful political opposition or prevented them from leaving their homes to participate with the Pope in celebrating mass. A number of religious groups, such as Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Mormons, continued their years-long wait for a decision from the Ministry of Justice on pending applications for official recognition."  - See more at: http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/religiousfreedom/index.htm#wrapper

-Paz, amor y besitos <3

jajaja!  Saw this at a bookstore.  

For the religious nuts!  Work it out.  We're rooting for you guys.

Churches are everywhere on the island.  

Close to the Revolution Plaza (Jose Marti monument standing in the background)

Pablo Nerudaaaaaa! <3 

Perito!