Voodoo Easter

Travelling through different countries during holiday times gives interesting insights into the culture.  While Benin is more than 60% Christian, it is also considered to be the birthplace of voodoo, as I described in a blog post last year.  The common understanding is that when the Catholics arrived in Benin many decades ago, they allowed them to keep their animist gods, and since then, the two have blended.  While Benin may be the birthplace, voodoo is prevalent in many other countries, including Togo, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Haiti, and elsewhere.

This past Saturday, the day between Good Friday and Easter, when we left the entrepreneurship training, traffic was backed up due to a considerable crowd on the road.  I was told that this was the voodoo Easter or voodoo Passover.  At this time, chickens are killed, and the blood is put on each person, which will then protect them for the next year.

January 10 is known as Voudon Day, a national holiday in Benin. For the first time this year, the President changed the celebration from one day to three days and offered international guests the opportunity to enter the country without visas to encourage tourism. When challenged by Christians, he reportedly said that this is their culture, the birthplace of voodoo, and it should be celebrated. During these days, various animals are killed, their blood is drunk, and ancestors are honored.

As always, seeing this in real life differs from reading about it. It becomes more real and sobering, and prayers for this country and its beautiful people become more urgent.

I observed another interesting fact in contrasting Burkina Faso to Benin.  Ouagadougou is known as a city with some of the highest numbers of motorcycles and scooters. It's a flood of these two-wheelers everywhere you go.  Consequently, there is no need for motorcycle taxis as most everyone has their own means.  You will see as many men as women driving them.  I learned that the goal is to give your son or daughter one of these as a gift when they graduate from high school.  Unfortunately, very few wear helmets, and I witnessed the death of one person as a result of a scooter accident.  

In contrast, in Benin, there are also many motorcycles and scooters, but they are only driven by men.  Parents are expected to give their sons these two-wheelers as gifts when they graduate, but not their daughters.  So, most women are riding on the back of these motorcycles as customers.  But everyone is wearing helmets! 

This observation informs me that these countries are doing better economically, especially compared to Burundi, where most families simply hope to purchase a bicycle at some point in their lives.  I have often observed three men pushing one bike up and down hills with their produce. Not an efficient use of time and we pray that this will change at some point in the future!

My time in Benin was encouraging, as I heard reports of people and the church doing better since they started the work of DML. The leader, Rev. David Sessou, the President of the Missionary Alliance Church in Benin, is now seeking to implement this in the seminaries and Bible schools and reach out to more denominations. While there, I was introduced to two other Presidents of different denominations.

I'm sending you this message from Cairo, Egypt, another unique city of 24 million people!  More updates on that next week.

While my Easter was a bit unusual, I pray this prayer from Peter Greig for myself and for you:

May this Easter day bring resurrection life to my heart and my home.  May renewal radiate within me and revival emanate through me.  May dawn displace the darkness, and spring replace the winter in my life.  May the God of hope so fill me with joy and peace this Easter, that I may overflow with hope by his power and life forever. Amen.