I'm Portuguese and I've lived in Brazil for practically 3 years and I noticed that Brazilians are very likely to adopt "external" religions from Catholic culture, even with Catholic families. apparently the same occurs in Mexico and other regions, such as "la santa muerte".Here in Brazil, for example, there is a bizarre African cult called "umbanda", highly syncretized with European spiritualism and Catholicism. It surprised me how many Brazilians follow this type of thing. Just close to the region where I live, there are 3 "temples".an addendum that I found funny; Even though it is a Yoruba cult, most of the ""priests"" are white and some look Germanic. ironic.What led to this historically? As little as I know, Brazil never had a consistent Catholic education and since the empire we have had spiritual elites.Anyone who has time and curiosity to know a little more about this cult and how bizarre it is, can read this very old article. https://apologistascatolicos.com.br/posicao-catolica-perante-a-umbanda/
>>17183657>Even though it is a Yoruba cultUmbanda isn't a Yoruba cult or faith.
>>17183661maybe not completely, it's obviously syncretized. But regardless, we can use the genetic term "African". and I realized that in Mexico there are some African cults
>>17183657As far as I know, Africans were integrated into the Portuguese empire and could act in different areas of the empire.and because it is syncretic with Catholicism, perhaps this is an explanation. In Mexico things are strange, because "santa muerte" appeared in the 1990s, and in Brazil it appeared in 1950 at least.
>>17183710false. la santa muerte is of Mesoamerican origin.although the way they represent her is a bad copy of Maria, that is 100% mexicaJust like in Brazil or the Mormons in the Americas, these retarded cults focus on poor areas where they cynically help with something and thus achieve bias. Do you want to convert an entire population?! gives them food, clothing and money.
all the posts here are retarded and gayThe fault lies indirectly with Catholicism itself.why? the saints.The USA had an African population almost as high as some places in Latin America, and why didn't we have similar syncretic cults? because they were Protestants and they despise Catholic saints.In the Spanish and Moortuguese colonies, Catholic culture was the reason for colonization in the first place, so these Africans or whoever could mix their pagan faith and gods with the saints, as smaller figures in something bigger.
>>17183657>Brazil never had a consistent Catholic education and since the empire we have had spiritual elites.You have already the answer OP
>>17183657Contrary to the romanticism and propaganda, the portuguese adventures in Brazil were solely economic and prozelityzation was very limited and rarely sponsored by the empire. Even causing conflicts between bandeirantes slave raiders and priests. All across latin-america, cristianity is just a white criollo religion, while the overwhelming brown/mixed majority practices insane sincretic cults.
catholicism is literally christian flavored paganism
>>17183779>while the overwhelming brown/mixed majority practices insane sincretic cults.You do know many white and near white people partake of Umbanda too?
>>17183704Africa wasn't the only influence to it.
>>17183779You are wrong
>>17183805I already said that, genius
>>17183722>The fault lies indirectly with Catholicism itself.>why? the saints.>The USA had an African population almost as high as some places in Latin America, and why didn't we have similar syncretic cults? because they were Protestants and they despise Catholic saints.This. Catholicism with it's cult of saints and mysticism lends well to syncretizing with pagan cults. Protestantism not so much.
>>17183657>I'm Portuguese and I've lived in Brazil for practically 3 yearsWhy?! Why would you subject yourself to this?
>>17184164my family has a meat business here.
>>17183657from latin america will come a new high culture
>>17183779nowhites also took/take part in syncretic cults and the people in the syncretic cult also go to church and consider themselves christians
Christianity itself is a syncretism between Roman paganism and Messianic Judaism
>>17183657It make more sense when you look into their theology and notices that it's just brazillian neoplatonism with Yoruba and Native aesthetics Also one of the main deities, Iemanjá, the queen of waters is mostly depicted as being white
>ethnoreligion>syncretic catholicism>nonsyncretic catholicism>protestantism>atheism>gay atheism>radical far right ethnoreligious revival>ethnoreligionWhat a strange trajectory for a society to be on.
Literally every religion has syncretism. A Catholic in France is different from a Catholic in America is different from a Catholic in Japan. Religion doesn't just completely mind-wipe populations and replace their culture (which is why pagan larpers are retarded) but what existed before is incorporated into the new thing to varying degrees. Christianity is heavily associated with various European norms which is why that is seen as the definitive version of Christianity but Christianity in other regions will have different expressions. This can be applied to any religion.
>>17186527>Iemanjá, the queen of waters is mostly depicted as being whiteI wouldnt be surprised if Lemanjá (Yemija) got fused with Mami Wata in Brazil.
>>17186539>Religion doesn't just completely mind-wipe populations and replace their culture (which is why pagan larpers are retarded)Not at all. Many areas if the world had purges of the old practices over the course of history as well as targeting he people who still worship them and crackdowns/persecution of the their religious gierachy
>>17186578The people who perpetuated those purges were also the ones born into that culture and religion. They were born and raised in that culture and then decided to change it. They can never escape their original roots. The people who converted brought with them their old traditions and behaviour too.
>>17186527this post was the dumbest by far.No, retard, they're not Neoplatonic or something.it's just African shit with 60% spiritualism and 20% Catholicism the rest is Native American stuff.>but it's whiteand? Maria has some representations of a black woman, which doesn't mean she's African or anything like that. you are looking at a shitty representation that is not even part of an "official image"their religion is so pathetic that it doesn't even have a continuation of representation of the figures. ze is also represented as white sometimes, this means absolutely nothing
>>17186527Your post is so retarded when you realize that this figure is a bad copy of our lady.Iemanjá doesn't even have this aesthetic or clothing. the clothing is not even African or nativeMacumbeiro burro>>17186573It's super possible, as all Macumbeira deities are syncretized. although they have African aesthetics and essence. They sometimes represent themselves as white because it would scare people to have images of black Bantu people in strange clothes or some Guarani shit. and of course, it's much harder to fool people that way. It's easier for you to try to copy Mary or some saint in any way and represent them as white. the OP's article talks about this. it's interesting
>>17186539you should know the difference between loving the past (what the church did) and imitating the past (as neo-pagans and relationalists did).The church has never syncretized any pagan religious practice or divinity, changing pagan holidays to Christian contexts is not the same as syncretizing. the OP's example is syncretism that a 14 year old girl would do, in fact, I am a student of comparative mythology and I have a book on Brazilian mythology and apparently there is not even a minimum unity between these beliefs.
>>17187250>they're not Neoplatonic or something.their theology is heavly neoplatonic due to euro influence, they even have their version of the One with Olódùmarè and the orixás being emanations of him>and? and nothing, was just a fun bit and another example of the syncretism > that is not even part of an "official image"yes, it is >>17187257>Iemanjá doesn't even have this aesthetic or clothing.Yes it does, that is one of the most common depiction of her in Brasil you retard The similarities with our lady depictions are due to the syncretism that we are talking about in the thread analfabeto>They sometimes represent themselves as white because it would scare people No the white representation come with the conflation of orixas with saint and from a bunch of people going into Umbanda and other syncretic brazilian religions being whites themselves and/or reporting the entities being white after experiences with them>>17187262>The church has never syncretized any pagan religious practice or divinity,the cult of the saints is just a christian version of pagan hero worship>changing pagan holidays to Christian contexts is not the same as syncretizingit is> a 14 year old girl would doand yet is what mostly older people doYou retards really have know idea of how religions work or develop
>>17187262>there is not even a minimum unity between these beliefs.Same for Christianity lmao. Imagine expecting neat and organized stories in a Religion.
>>17186623>The people who perpetuated those purges were also the ones born into that culture and religionLmao many of them weren't at all. That's a poor excuse to justify religious persecution.
>>17183804I know, retard, I only said the majority of brown people are not catholic.
>>17186501Nigger, the point is that the majority of true die hard catholics in latin-america are white>and the people in the syncretic cult also go to church and consider themselves christiansSo they are not christians.
>>17183657I'm interested in similar syncretic practices in Bolivia. I've been self-studying a lot about the global silver trade in the Renaissance/Age Of Enlightenment which has led me to read about Potosi, a Bolivian city which has produced something like a fifth of the world's silver at its peak. There are some incredible, beautiful Baroque churches, but the miners there who still dig for silver give offerings to a deity they call El Tio to protect them from cave-ins and the like. This is seen as compatible with Christianity because they use the logic that El Tio rules under the Earth, while God rules everything on land and above
>>17183657>Even though it is a Yoruba cult, most of the ""priests"" are white and some look Germanic. ironic.Yeah, it's as if culture and spirituality trascends physical aspect, or as if phenotype and genotype are two different things, or as if recessive genes are something that exist, or as if Brazil had varied phenotypes, or as if, oh my God, Portuguese Catholicism, precolonial indigenous beliefs and African beliefs carried by slaves somehow all met each other, or as if all of this was in basically every single middle school book about the discovery of America
>>17188516Than who the fuck does at this point then?
>>17188528>the point is that the majority of true die hard catholics in latin-america are whiteMany are irreligious, are only nominally Catholics, or use it for it.age politics.>So they are not christians.Asian with that superb strict criteria pretty much no one is actually Chriatian. That is some borderline Islamist purity faith politics right there.
>>17188589>Many are irreligious, are only nominally Catholics, or use it for it.age politics.Whatever, anyway if you ever find a true practicing catholic in latin-america, he'll be white>Asian with that superb strict criteria pretty much no one is actually ChriatianNigger, the basis of christianity is worshipping one single god. If you worship anything else than Jesus, you're not christian.
>>17188528>>17188764>if you ever find a true practicing catholic in latin-america, he'll be whiteNo, whites mostly are either irreligious, spiritualists or into some syncretic religion Most die hard catholics that claim everything above is satanic are mixed or brown> the basis of christianity is worshipping one single godno, the basis of christianity is the believe that Jesus was a divine being and many early versions of christianity considered Jesus and the Father as separate(non con-substantial) beings
