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Devotees praying to Santa Muerte in Mexico. Santa Muerte can be translated into English as either "Saint Death" or "Holy Death", although R. Andrew Chesnut, Ph.D. in Latin American history and professor of Religious studies, believes that the former is a more accurate translation because it "better reveals" her identity as a folk saint.
Sporting gloves and a red ribbon to ward off evil, Ecuadoran police raiding a drug den apprehensively inspect an altar to Santa Muerte — a Mexican "death saint" adopted by local gangs as their ...
Mexican tradition holds the goddess or folk saint called Santa Muerte as the personification of death. [34] In modern-day European-based folklore, Death is known as the "Grim Reaper" or "The grim spectre of death". This form typically wields a scythe, and is sometimes portrayed riding a white horse.
In past times, and present, people would form cults around death and figures. Famously, Anubis, Osiris, Hades, and La Santa Muerte have all had large cult followings. La Santa Muerte (Saint Death), or the personification of death, is currently worshiped by many in Mexico and other countries in Central America.
Catholic church leaders have rebuked worship of Santa Muerte (meaning "Saint Death or "Holy Death") as "spiritually dangerous" superstition, paganism and demonic heresy.
However, unlike Santa Muerte and Jesús Malverde, veneration of Judas Thaddaeus receives support from the Catholic Church as a manifestation of folk religion in Latin America. [10] The archdiocese celebrates the saint's day, and clarifies that Judas Thaddaeus is not a saint for delinquency or drug trafficking, nor related in any way to Santa ...
The rituals connected and powers ascribed to San La Muerte are very similar to those of Santa Muerte; the resemblance between their names, however, is coincidental. In Guatemala, San Pascualito is a skeletal folk saint venerated as "King of the Graveyard." He is depicted as a skeletal figure with a scythe, sometimes wearing a cape and crown.
Learn about the history and meaning behind traditional Christmas colors: red, green, gold, white and purple. Experts explain their origins and significace.