I was born in a Christian country where everyone is a Vodouisant. In Haiti, there is a common saying that goes like this: “Haiti is 70% Catholic, 30% Protestant and 100% Vodou.”
Vodou, as an African diasporic spiritual system of belief that was born based on the spiritual needs of the trans-Atlantic enslaved, is one of the spiritual practices of the African people in the West. Upon their arrival in Saint-Domingue, now Haiti, the enslaved created something that could bring them together.
For them, this ancestral spiritual practice was a doorway to meet Christ. Vodou was a way to come to gather, to pray, discern and open themselves to the work of the Holy Spirit. This was their culture and spiritual avenue where they encountered the Spirit.
Like many other local spiritual systems, Vodou appeals to many who take shelter in the margin of the Gospel. This helps to connect them with all spiritual possibilities, including how people speak, eat and pray, as a way to connect with the Divine.
Continue reading at National Catholic Reporter