#santeria | Inside the Mind of Isadora

Sunday was family day. Staten Island was Father’s favorite place to go because of the beautiful beaches, plus his good friend, Mr. Frank, had a big home surrounded by a white picket fence, and backyard for us five kids.

Mr. Frank was a Santero. During WWII, he migrated to Cuba from Germany. His live-in housekeeper was from Haiti. She made the best rosemary fried chicken for us.

The spiritual rituals, Mr.Frank performed were in the basement. Saintly statues, lit candles, incense, cigars, red and white fabrics, were part of the alter. He was frightening.

We always stayed outside.

2020©*Isadora DeLaVega*

**~~~~~~~~~**

Genre: Flash Fiction
Word Count: 100
Photo Prompt:©Ted Strutz

To join Rochelle and her Friday Fictioneers challenge click below

21 August 2020

~~~~~~~~~

The term “Santería” translates into English as the “way of the saints.”^[1] This is the most popular name for the religion, although some practitioners consider it offensive and avoid it in favor of alternatives.

Santería developed among Afro-Cuban communities amid the Atlantic slave trade of the 16th to 19th centuries. It formed through the blending of the traditional religions brought to Cuba by enslaved West Africans, the majority of them Yoruba, and Roman Catholicism, the only religion legally permitted on the island by the Spanish colonial government.©wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santer%C3%ADa/

Rain poured down. We were waiting on line to board the Staten Island ferry; a habitual Sunday routine. Usually, we’d go to the beach then visit, Mr. Frank. He was a Santero.

I was feeling car sick. My dad smoked Camels.The open windows would blow the smoke into the backseat.

I can remember the first time we were waiting to board. I had a panic attack and couldn’t stop crying. I thought we were going to drive into the ocean. I can’t swim.

“Shut up!”

A simple explanation would have helped.

Uncanny, I still see a ferry and cringe.

2017©Isadora DeLaVega

Genre: Flash Fiction
Word Count: 100 Words
Photo Prompt: ©Ted Strutz

To join Rochelle and her Friday Fictioneers challenge
click here

Santeria is a syncretistic Caribbean religion.

Santeria includes the worship of the Orisha — literally “head guardians,” and religious beliefs of the Yoruba and Bantu people in Southern Nigeria, Senegal and Guinea Coast. These are combined with elements of Roman Catholicism.
Arriving as slaves in the Caribbean, Santerians preserved the elements of their religion by equating each Orisha of their traditional religions with a corresponding christian saint. Many traditions, within the religion, recognize different equivalencies.

One common example includes:
Babalz Ayi became St. Lazarus (patron of the sick)

Shangs became St. Barbara (controls thunder, lightning, fire…)

Eleggua or Elegba became St. Anthony (controls roads, gates etc)

Obatala became Our Lady of Las Mercedes, and the Resurrected Christ (father of creation; source of spirituality)

Oggzn became St. Peter (patron of war)

Oshzn became Our Lady of Charity (controls money, sensuality…)

Many Santerian beliefs are not freely discussed outside of the faith. In addition, there are many religious leaders whose beliefs and practices differ significantly. information click here