1/12/10 Empath Haiti Sitting paying bills, fine-point pen in hand, feeling the fatigue of the workday, alone and afraid, I search for answers about making ends meet and increasing income...no money left, mind clouds and eyes blur. Why have You forsaken me? I fade in and out of the moment. Words murmured to myself become increasingly muffled as sounds blend into the cracking walls that surround and a stabbing pain shreds through my right arm, extended groping, pushing against a slab of cement that pins me to the ground... My skin has turned from a pale cream to a coffee bean brown. The words I utter are no longer familiar to me, but they flow like a bastardized staccato French. Ban mwen, souple'...My plump white flesh has withered to bare muscle and bone. My arm aches...it's crushed beneath a weight of cement. Nou bezwen....Screams and cries deafen me in this language. Kisa pi nou fe? Names are whispered somewhere in my mind, evaporating ami d the wails - Ketty, Brunel, Genevieve, Emmanuel, Mireille - their souls finespun, rising into the heavens. Sickness, despair, pain and pressure close me into shadows. Years of political usury cripple my strength. I breath in dust, cement and dirt. Toupatou... Heavy hands of dictatorial oppression squeeze my narrowing throat. My mouth will not open, the words fade into soft moans. I don't feel my body complete - it is in pieces, scattered, surging pain then numb, as if hacked by machetes. Kote nou ye? But my mind is racing, sifting in and out, several dimensions, all feel strange, but all familiar, as if I have dreamt these passages all before. Dust scrapes the inside of my nose. The gritty taste of mudcakes scratches the corners of my mouth. My lips swell parched, cracked and cut. My bones protrude like spikes from the depth of my soul. I smell hardened blood and death on me, around me. Only the Lord can reach me where I am. Only He knows where to find me. My mind darkens. I try to take a breath, inhale, rattling my throat, weak, fading.....then.. A burst of strength from who knows where forces me from the padded armchair in front of the computer and I drop the pen. I rise and walk around, shaking off this inexplicable moment of transfiguration, unsure of who I am, where I was, when and how it will again envelope me. by jjill ©28 janvier 2010

not too much as i taught high school in Togo in 1970-1971 and saw some of that first hand.

I find it strange that the professor does believe in heaven and hell but he believes that there are spirit beings. Why would an omnipotent God being need spirit beings to do His bidding?

This is the second time I have heard the Patrick Bellegard Smith interview. The second time was even better. I am in my 70s and presently in don't have any real feeling or belief in organized religion. I was raised Roman Catholic and subsequently became an Episcopalian. I have always felt I was more spiritual than a religious person. I have to say I connected with Mr. Smith in a way that is really hard to put a finger on but I feel more spiritual than ever and more comfortable in this state. Thanks for rerunning it.

I cried when I heard this broadcast. Something hit me when I heard the Vodou worship music in this program. I had worshiped in a congregation with Pentecosal practice, so I do believe there is an evil spirit manifesting in person's life. That has been a reason why I took Vodou as an evil cult. Since then, my understanding about effects of Western Empire on colonial culture and religion, as well as economy, grew. I think one needs to understand the history of slavery and racism to truly comprehend third world cultures and religions. I don't know about Vodou except my concept about cursing through witchcraft and sorcery. But Christian faith contains blessing and cursing too, if not with a doll. If one believes cursing is not of God, in the context of love of Jesus, one may know he/she needs to choose blessing. Perhaps there are similarities in Vodou also? This broadcast challenged me to see Haitian religion in their frame of mind. There are dangers in 'trance', when a person abandons his/her spirit to unknowns. But people do this even in investing in the stock market, with 'trance' of greed. Maybe we are not seeing the cult aspect of Wall Street more than Vodou?

I have listened to you for a long time, and must say that the time and events made this absoluty the right time subject to to time to address this subject.Your speaker was informative, clear and believable, and helped me immensely in sorting thru my man thoughts on events, discussion ainterraction with the Haitian Culture. I am finally ready to take the next step to an open discussion, Thank you. Please never stop doing what you do so we well. Educating us about the people of the world thru their Faith..

You have had a Haitian chap telling that Haiti was quite poor and yet there was a great spirit among the people. News flash: I was just in Cuba for 2 weeks - and while not as poor as Haiti - there is also a great spirit there - and also while Catholicism is widely spread - I would be very hesitant to base this wonderful spirit on religious bases.

Dear Krista-

I always enjoy your show when I can. I have just finished listening to your Living Vodou program, and I must thank you. It is heartening, indeed, very exciting, to finally see this bona fide spiritual path portrayed as such in the mainstream media. I enjoyed it immensely.

Thank You,
Christine

It was wonderful to see Vodou shown and described as a valid spiritual belief - not just as a crazy, entertaining, evil concept.

Bellegarde-Smith described how he rejected his Catholic-Christian upbringing and embraced vodou as practiced in his native Haiti. God has created human beings with many skin tones, hair textures, and music styles. Many in the world think that Christianity is Western European, forgetting that Jesus Christ was born in Israel. Unfortunately some Christians have tried to impose their culture as they sought to win souls for Christ in various parts of the world.
Bellegard-Smith seems to have equated rejection of Christianity with embracing of his African roots in vodou. He has allowed 417 demons (he calls them deities) to take control of his life. He has rejected the idea of a Creator God as told in the Bible, as well as the concepts of sin, heaven and hell. His descriptions of the activities of his 'deities" sounds more like the stories from Greek mythology. He stated that African religions are monotheistic but declares that the vodou god is merely an 'it,' not a person as Christians believe. He stated that Haiti is 100 percent vodou. The heritage of poverty in Haiti is seen in terms of their spiritual poverty with the practice of vodou as well as in the material sense with the extreme lack of human comforts that most Haitians face.

I have a deep respect and some degree of insight into the Vodou system of beliefs. I, therefore, was not particularly challenged by this program, but I enjoyed it immensly. However, I found the idea that the spirits are deminished in some way because of their lack of physicallity, interesting. I can't help but reflect on the attributes that may manifest if not constrained by the physical. In the Bible, we are told, " In my Fathers house there are many mansions." Perhapes the "Kingdom of Names" is merely one: The others, no doubt, beyond our ability to conceptualize.
I was particularly gladdened to realize that my decendents can correct the errors that I might have made that impact the worlds in a negative sense.
Keep up the good work.

I was of the impression, Vodou had nothing in common with the Roman Catholic Church. Now I have learned and understood, that they are indeed very closely related, of one family and origin. The saints of one serve as spirits for the other and vice versa. I found that insight to be very valuable. Thank you.

I wouldn't say this program challenged but confirmed my assumptions about Vodou. I found it odd that you would say it was an odd new concept for Christians in reference to Vodou believers being ridden by spirits. This screamed to me classic demonic possession! I know you spoke of pentacostals being overtaken by the Holy Spirit and I do not discount this, but I do believe the darkside attempts to counterfeit God's workings. It reminds me of Revelation's "Lying signs and wonders,"

I understand as an interviewer, you would not want to insult your guests but I wish you would have shared that this appears extremely dangerous spiritually to Christians. To me practitioners of Vodou are clearly on the wrong path, so I am wondering if it would insult their spirts if they asked Jesus Christ to show them something?
This reminds of 1Peter 3:15 " But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,"

I have a better understanding of what I considere a beautiful religion and way of life. I wish we had Voodoo communities in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. I would love to visit with them. I wonder if they only speak French in their services.

I am also a "priest," though I have been ordained in the Episcopal Church. I know a little about Haiti, as it is the largest Diocese in The Episcopal Church. I know very little about vodou (mostly from seeing the movie, "The Serpent and the Rainbow" years ago). This interview was certainly an education for me. As a white, western-bred Christian, I needed to be reminded that although Haiti has been the poorest country in the Western hemisphere, economically, it is a very rich country spiritually and culturally. As other countries rush in to "save" Haiti, we need to listen carefully to those whom we consider to be "poor." As your guest pointed out, there is a resilient capacity for joy in the midst of suffering in Haiti. Jesus Christ also famously noted, "blessed are the poor." It seems to me that Haitians and vodou have something to teach all Christians and the rest of the Western Hemisphere about blessing and recognizing the presence of divine spirit in all things. Thank you very much for this broadcast.

In the name of Vodou, young girls are raped in religious ceremonies and human sacrifices still occur. The people are kept illiterate and poor and told they have to pay witch doctors large sums of money to be blessed. To not research and ask questions about these practices shows a complete lack of due diligence in reporting and I was, for the first time, very disappointed in this show.

Dear SoF,

Bravo for helping to explode the mythology of 'Hollywood voodoo' --- this particular program's greatest asset.
Moreover, based on personal experience, I wholeheartedly agree with Vodou's take on the balance between good and evil in human nature and attendant reward and punishment, as conveyed by your guest Patrick Bellegarde-Smith on behalf of his faith.
My greatest personal regret is to have been ringleader of a brazenly injurious gang of schoolyard bullies during my junior-high years, a fact which has left my life dogged by bad karma ever since.
My sole point of contention with Mr. Bellegrade-Smith's outlook lies in his suggestion that any given entity in the spirit world is wafting around in a state of frustrated yearning, pining for the dexterity of the human form.
A ludicrous notion, frankly too silly for words, with all due respect to the balance of Mr. Bellgrade-Smith's philosophy.
I'm trying to imagine Krista Tippett interviewing a spirit openly envious of our being bound (if not necessarily gagged) by the high-maintenance putrefaction of the corporeal plane.
Only a very foolish ghost would be caught, um, dead wishing for a personal taste of such a sorry state of being.
I'm sure even Pat Robertson would agree.

Krista, I was intrigued by your radio program with guest Patrick Bellegarde-Smith, as you discussed the core elements of Haiti's Vodou religion. Your interview style is very pleasant, and I appreciate how you are genuinely interested in the fascinating aspects of religion and culture. Your questions were non-offensive and thought-provoking, which proves that you've researched the subject matter and that you care to convey a deep reverence for people's beliefs. I also appreciate your desire to uncover misconceptions and present doctrinal facts. Your program served to both confirm and clarify my knowledge of Haiti's rich religious history. My ties to Haiti result from a two-year stint (1986-88) there as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons). While there sharing the gospel, I learned life lessons, and grew to love and respect the Haitian people. Now, as our church joins with other humanitarian organizations to provide relief to the earthquake victims, I am humbled, and feel grateful for the broad national and international support to a small country of which I am so fond. Thank you again, T. Corry (Utah)

I listen to your program while waiting for my wife to come from here class at church and find some of your discussions to be fascinating and thought provoking. The African-American today (Feb. 14, 2010) was very interesting and enjoyable. I liked his attitude and manner. Last week there was the discussion of "Living Vodou" (is it sometimes spelled VooDoo?), much of the material was somewhat new in my understand of this practice. I am a Christian and today there were several in the congregation at our curch who have lived, worked and served with the Christian church in Haiti. Some are returning to Haiti this week and another group have been serving as medical people in the country. So we hear a lot about the earthquake and caregivers to Haitian people. Some of our ministry families (Americans) lost their lives in collapsing buildings. We have been giving thousands of dollars of relief money and our denomination (as have other Christian groups of various kinds) has been giving hundreds of thousands in funds to help these dear people who have been devastate by this event. My question is "How do those who practice Vodou respond to tragedies like this?" Also, "How do you respond to the activities of those who believe it is a God of love and compassion Who is loving through them as they love and serve in compassionate ministries?" Mr Bellegarde-Smith taught, if I am not incorrect, that in Vodou there is no concept of God who expresses love in this way? Christians believe there is a Personal Father-like God to whom we are accountable and honors those who serve others in love.

Sincerely, Dick Barker

I used to live with a Haitian family in Cambridge, MA. This story brought back wonderful memories of their spiritual ceremonies and celebration of life! Thank you :-)

I personally believe that there is two forces. One that opreates in the dark and the other that operates in the light.

I'm from the Catholic faith, and seeing certain photos such as these are rather strange to me. It almost has a similarity to seeing photos of an exorcism being performed. I do not believe in "vodou," and feel it is not of the Christian faith to do such things or acts. From the photo above, I see a ritual being performed that is very wild like.