“At 4:53 p.m. on Tuesday, January 12, 2010, Haiti plunged into horror” (Lahens, 2010, p. 9). The earthquake affected three and a half million individuals, left two hundred and twenty thousand people dead, and destroyed four thousand schools (DEC, 2015). It is safe to say that Haiti’s recent history has been dramatically shaped by the 7.0 magnitude earthquake (DEC, 2015) that struck in 2010. Understanding both the gravity of and the world’s response to the 2010 earthquake is essential in understanding the destructive relationship that has existed between Protestant medical missionaries and Vodun practitioners. Before exploring the historical and spiritual concepts of healing in Haiti, an overview of the current context of Haiti post-earthquake
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The religious framework of Vodou in Haiti can be traced back to traditions of slaves who were forcibly brought to Haiti from Kongo and Dahomey regions of West Africa (Desmangles, 1992). Haiti was previously called Saint-Domingue was colonized in 1492 and the colony was formed through the eighteenth century (Desmangles, 1992). As of 1797, around half a million inhabited the island people, ninety percent of which being of African origin (Desmangles, 1992). It is important to understand that Vodou has been a part of the Haitian way of life for as long as it’s been colonized, and the traditions associated with this worldview can’t and shouldn’t be wiped out by traveling …show more content…
Karen McCarthy Brown (2001) writes that a common saying amongst Haitians is “Mon fet pou mouri,” which means “people are born to die” (p. 43). This is important, because situates death as something that is commonplace and as the trajectory that we are all headed towards. Death being commonplace can alter the degree to which someone values biomedical treatment over say, spiritual healing. This outlook on suffering and death is important to overlay on top of the trauma that Haiti has faced, particularly the 2010 earthquake. Health providers, specifically those coming from a non-Haitian socio-cultural and spiritual background, must not ascribe their own concepts of death to their Haitian
The religious framework of Vodou in Haiti can be traced back to traditions of slaves who were forcibly brought to Haiti from Kongo and Dahomey regions of West Africa (Desmangles, 1992). Haiti was previously called Saint-Domingue was colonized in 1492 and the colony was formed through the eighteenth century (Desmangles, 1992). As of 1797, around half a million inhabited the island people, ninety percent of which being of African origin (Desmangles, 1992). It is important to understand that Vodou has been a part of the Haitian way of life for as long as it’s been colonized, and the traditions associated with this worldview can’t and shouldn’t be wiped out by traveling …show more content…
Karen McCarthy Brown (2001) writes that a common saying amongst Haitians is “Mon fet pou mouri,” which means “people are born to die” (p. 43). This is important, because situates death as something that is commonplace and as the trajectory that we are all headed towards. Death being commonplace can alter the degree to which someone values biomedical treatment over say, spiritual healing. This outlook on suffering and death is important to overlay on top of the trauma that Haiti has faced, particularly the 2010 earthquake. Health providers, specifically those coming from a non-Haitian socio-cultural and spiritual background, must not ascribe their own concepts of death to their Haitian