CHRISTIANITY AND HOODOO: DO THEY MIX?
A well-known former New Age occultist-turned-ardent-Christian recently asserted that Christianity is incompatible with other religions and spiritual practices outside of the Christian purview. It got me to thinking about a few things. Aside from the mountain of evidence across the world that such a claim is historically untrue, it is also a way to sanitize the Christian tradition itself, which at its start began its worship in the underground graves of Europe. The Eucharist was celebrated on top of the bones of the dead in the catacombs of Rome and elsewhere. Scholars have even found spells, written not long after Jesus’ death, where Jesus was called upon by sorcerors of the day in their magic. So, even people outside of the faith saw that this new religion had power and used it.
This is also a part of Hoodoo history in a way. Those enslaved then freed, and all the other ethnic groups who eventually practiced adjacent forms of rootwork all weaved aspects of Christianity into folk magic. Powwowers do it. Appalachian Conjure in its different forms does it. We all have. At root (pun intended) is the spiritual instinct of recognizing power wherever it is encountered and making use of it.
Sometimes, throughout American history, that has been covert and subversive, like when enslaved folks would gather quietly and pray in basins of water so the slavemasters did not hear their prayers. Other times, it would be in moments like when a conjure doctor was dragged into court for practicing medicine without a license and would chew Little John and spit it out in the courtroom to dominate the judge and everyone opposing him, murmuring a Psalm for victory in court under their breath.
Making broad, absolutist declarations without putting scholarship behind them will only convince those who do not want to think for themselves. For the rest of us, it never flies. Christianity, Judaism, and Hoodoo have always had a symbiotic relationship with each other because of how American life played itself out during and after American Slavery and all the other watershed moments of early American history that came about. Studying this history will show you a counter-vision of this country that was not as messed up as other things we know happened. It is a place where you can see some of the counter-cultural forces that conspired to come together and sustain diverse communities of practices during historical periods where our majority culture desired separation and oppression. In American history, a small but dedicated few have continuously withstood the tides of ignorance and hatred that gripped most of us. Hoodoo is a part of that history.
My introductory class is well underway and already shows the promise of a beautiful, diverse, and dynamic group of people coming together to learn and grow. If you would like to learn more about this lovely tradition that emboldened so many who came before us, I warmly invite you to join us. The link is here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/working-the-roots/.
Hope to see you in class!
