Sacred Possessions: Vodou, Santerφa, Obeah, and the Caribbean [Paperback]

Margarite Fernandez Olmos (Editor), Lizabeth Paravisini-Gebert (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1997

"A marvelous example of African Diaspora Studies . . . challenges our usual scholarly and everyday articulations of religion, even as it clearly articulates the possibilities and limits of Caribbean African retentions in Vodou, Santeria, and Obeah." --Barbara Christian, University of California, Berkeley Sacred Possessions is an unprecedented collection of thirteen comparative and interdisciplinary essays exploring the cross-cultural dynamics of African-based religious systems in the Caribbean. The contributors analyze the nature and liturgies of Vodou, Santeria, Obeah, Quimbois, and Gaga as they form one central cultural matrix in the region. They ask how these belief systems were affected by differing colonial histories and landscapes, how they affected other cultural expressions (from the oral tradition to popular art and literature), and how they have been perceived and (mis)represented by the West. The book is a unique contribution to the study of the Caribbean as a site of mutliculturalism, demonstrating the linkages between anthropology, religion, literature, and popular culture. Also included are a stunning photoessay on Cuban Santeria, a glossary of terms, and an insightful introduction by the editors. Margarite Fernandez Olmos is a professor of Spanish at Brooklyn College. She is coeditor and translator with Lizabeth Paravisini-Gebert of Pleasure in the Word: Erotic Writing by Latin American Women and Remaking a Lost Harmony: Stories from the Hispanic Caribbean. Lizabeth Paravisini-Gebert is a professor of Caribbean and Latin American literature in the department of Hispanic studies at Vassar College. She is the coeditor of Green Cane and Juicy Flotsam: Short Stories by Caribbean Women and author of Phyllis Shand Allfrey: A Caribbean Life.

Editorial Reviews

Review

A marvelous example of African Diaspora Studies... challenges our usual scholarly and everyday articulations of religion, even as it clearly articulates the possibilities and limits of Caribbean African retentions in Vodou, Santeria, and Obeah. -- Barbara Christian, University of California at Berkeley

From the Back Cover

Sacred Possessions is an unprecedented collection of thirteen comparative and interdisciplinary essays exploring the cross-cultural dynamics of African-based religious systems in the Caribbean. The contributors analyze the nature and liturgies of Vodou, Santeria, Obeah, Quimbois, and Gaga as they form one central cultural matrix in the region. They ask how these belief systems were affected by differing colonial histories and landscapes, and how they affected other cultural expressions (from the oral tradition to popular art and literature), and how they have been perceived and (mis)represented by the West.

The book is a unique contribution to the study of the Caribbean as a site of multiculturalism, demonstrating the linkages between anthropology, religion, literature, and popular culture. Also included are a stunning photoessay on Cuban Santeria, a glossary of terms, and an insightful introduction by the editors.

Product Details

• Paperback: 326 pages
• Publisher: Rutgers University Press (March 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813523613
• ISBN-13: 978-0813523613
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #979,049 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A really good book!, July 12, 2001

By 

Andrea Bocchi (Milano, MI Italy) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sacred Possessions: Vodou, Santerφa, Obeah, and the Caribbean (Paperback)

I'm an anthropology, but before being anthropology i'm an obeahman. I was initiate in Obeah in Trinidad. This is a good book for who desires know much about my path (Obeah) and other tradictions from Africa. A really good book!!!