about pat robertson's comments on haiti
mr robertson is one of those people who just piss me off. to go so far as to say they deserved it because they made a pact with the devil 200 years ago is preposterous at best.
the enslaved peoples of Haiti never practiced satanism. they still don't. most Haitians consider themselves good christian souls. they practice(d) vodun, or voodoo. as many of you know, vodun is deeply connected to Catholicism, the loa interconnected with the saints. vodun played a role in the revolt, the signal to start being given in the middle of a ceremony, but it was no pact with the devil. following is a translation of the prayer they used....
N. and R. Heinl, in their book Written in Blood, give the following translation of the Bwa Kayiman prayer: "Good Lord who hath made the sun that shines upon us, that riseth from the sea, who maketh the storm to roar; and governeth the thunders, The Lord is hidden in the heavens, and there He watcheth over us. The Lord seeth what the blancs have done. Their god commandeth crimes, ours giveth blessings upon us. The Good Lord hath ordained vengeance. He will give strength to our arms and courage to our hearts. He shall sustain us. Cast down the image of the god of the blancs, because he maketh the tears to flow from our eyes. Hearken unto Liberty that speaketh now in all your hearts." (Heinl p. 43)
the ONLY part that makes them seem unchristian is the part about casting down the god of the blancs, which makes sense. they could not fathom a good god to order the absolute horrendous conditions they were subjected to. this was no curse. this was a call for strength to regain their human rights. granted, things got worse afterward, but not because of some celestial curse, but due to lack of education and civility among the former slaves.
someone needs to give mr robertson a better history book.
the enslaved peoples of Haiti never practiced satanism. they still don't. most Haitians consider themselves good christian souls. they practice(d) vodun, or voodoo. as many of you know, vodun is deeply connected to Catholicism, the loa interconnected with the saints. vodun played a role in the revolt, the signal to start being given in the middle of a ceremony, but it was no pact with the devil. following is a translation of the prayer they used....
N. and R. Heinl, in their book Written in Blood, give the following translation of the Bwa Kayiman prayer: "Good Lord who hath made the sun that shines upon us, that riseth from the sea, who maketh the storm to roar; and governeth the thunders, The Lord is hidden in the heavens, and there He watcheth over us. The Lord seeth what the blancs have done. Their god commandeth crimes, ours giveth blessings upon us. The Good Lord hath ordained vengeance. He will give strength to our arms and courage to our hearts. He shall sustain us. Cast down the image of the god of the blancs, because he maketh the tears to flow from our eyes. Hearken unto Liberty that speaketh now in all your hearts." (Heinl p. 43)
the ONLY part that makes them seem unchristian is the part about casting down the god of the blancs, which makes sense. they could not fathom a good god to order the absolute horrendous conditions they were subjected to. this was no curse. this was a call for strength to regain their human rights. granted, things got worse afterward, but not because of some celestial curse, but due to lack of education and civility among the former slaves.
someone needs to give mr robertson a better history book.