Syncretism

 Catholicism is universal, and as such it has many, many diverse cultural influences.  Many of these are even contrary to the Church's teaching, but they are so ingrained in the culture that our priests have a hard time fighting them, if not eradicating them.  Ephesians 6: 12.  For example, I've been told that the people is Haiti are 70% Catholic and 100% practitioners of Voo Doo.

Another example, take Day of the Dead, Nov. 1 and 2.  On the Churches calendar they are named All Saints Day and then All Souls Day.  Without knowing anything about Day of the Dead, and not wanting to know anything about Day of the Dead, I disparaged any idea of it.  It was creepy. A day came, however, when I changed my mind.  I was sitting with my husband in the ICU while he was recovering from heart surgery.  The television was on one channel and on that channel was the movie, Coco. It was very enlightening to learn that Day of the Dead is a celebration of life.  It is a day of remembering your deceased loved ones--All Saints and All Souls Day. There is nothing creepy about Day of the Dead at all.  It is a memorial.

There are other strange customs that are not so innocuous.  In Mexico, where there are more problems than a math book, especially with the arrival of so many immigrants traveling through, it is nigh near impossible not to look for patron saints for examples to emulate and/or pray to intercede for you because you can identify with them.

One of these is Dona Sebastina.  The Catholic Church does not have a saint by that name.  But the people want one and have made up one by combining attributes of this and that saint.  Foremost is Saint Sebastian.  He was very courageous and was martyred.  The people who are afraid of the Mexican gangs, drugs, corrupt soldiers, border patrol, and police, need the courage and fortitude of Saint Sebastian, hence Dona Sebastina.  She is depicted as an old lady with white hair and is a skeleton like the depictions of Day of the Dead.  

The people are afraid of death and Dona Sebastina keeps death at bay.  There are confraternities which practiced a sort of syncretized religion of Mexican folklore and Catholicism.  The Catholic priests have a hard time dealing with it. On the surface, these adherents are pious Catholics; they may even work for the church.  But culture and family are a strong influence in local Catholic thought.  The Catholic Church considers syncretism heretical. But the adherents can't be convinced.  That is one reason why when there are religious procession celebrating Holy Week, Good Friday, etc., some of the paraders wear hoods.  They don't want their priests to see them celebrating forbidden beliefs.

Emilio Morenatti / AP

Emilio Morenatti / AP    Penitents from San Gonzalo brotherhood carry their crosses as they take part in a procession in Seville,

 Spain on March 25, 2013.