Las Mujeres Cubanas Las Mujeres Cubanas y la Santeriay la Santeria

Women Practicing Women Practicing Santeria in CubaSanteria in Cuba

Nancy J. PadrónNancy J. Padrón

IntroductionIntroduction

CUBAThe most practiced religion on the Island is Santeria.

•Born among the African Yoruban people who were taken to Cuba as slaves between the 16th and 19th centuries.

DefinitionDefinitionSanteria:

• Means “veneration of the Saints”• Fuses African myths with Catholic

Saints.• Syncretic religion

Orisha:• A divine being, who like Catholic Saints,

is petitioned on behalf of humanity and who’s origin stems from the religious worldview of the Yoruba people.

SyncretizationSyncretization

ObatalaObatalaVirgen de las MercedesVirgen de las Mercedes

Our Lady of MercyOur Lady of Mercy

SyncretizationSyncretization

OchunOchun Virgen de la Caridad Virgen de la Caridad (Patron Saint of (Patron Saint of Cuba)Cuba)Our Lady of CharityOur Lady of Charity

SyncretizationSyncretization

ChangoChango Santa BarbaraSanta BarbaraSt. BarbaraSt. Barbara

SyncretizationSyncretization

YemayaYemayaVirgen de ReglaVirgen de ReglaOur Lady of RuleOur Lady of Rule

Society in CubaSociety in Cuba

Santeria is understood to permeate

all aspects of Cuban society.• Currently, it is estimated that

between 91% and 96% of Cubans practice Santeria.

Ferminita Gomez Ferminita Gomez

Born in 1860 and Died in 1958

Omo YemayaYemaya Daughter

Ferminita GomezFerminita Gomez• Was the first Santera to perform an

Olokun Ceremony in Cuba – a very detailed and involved ceremony – that no one had been able to perform before her.

• The rituals of this ceremony were passed down to her from her great, grandmother to her grandmother to her mother and then to her.

• She was a respected Santera who was doted upon by many whites in Matanzas, Cuba.

Role of WomenRole of WomenContrary to the status of women in Cuba, particularly people of color who had been subjugated for centuries…..In Santeria, the women were respected and revered because they played an integral role in the hierarchy of the religion.

SanterasSanteras• The reason for this reverence was

because women symbolically gave birth to their Godchildren in a ceremony called an “Asiento” (which is when the “Iyawo” (Initiate) is joined with the Orisha that claims them).

• Asientos can not take place if Men are the only ones present. Symbolically, since men can not “give birth”

Santeras as GodmothersSanteras as Godmothers

• Santeras take their role as Godmothers very seriously and from the moment the initate is born – the “baby Iyawo” is their responsibility and the care which includes instruction and training - is a lifetime commitment. Symbolic to Motherhood.

Women as IyawosWomen as Iyawos• The Iyawo after a year learns the

teachings of her ancestors - is then ready to practice as a Santera as evaluated by the Godmother and by the learning that has taken place which prepares her to participate rituals and ceremonies.

ConclusionConclusion

• Santeria, in spite of being a full fledged religion in its own right – was never granted the status of other religious institutions in Cuba.

• Instead it was looked upon as a folkloric religion.

ConclusionConclusion

• Paradoxically, today, due to the fact that Catholics and others were persecuted when Fidel Castro took over the country – Santeria has now taken its place within Cuban Society and Society at large.

ConclusionConclusion

• There is a concern among Santeras, the Godchildren of Ferminita Gomez, that Santeria is allowed to be practiced not so much for its religious and spiritual reverence - but for its economic revenues as a main source of touristic attraction.