Does the Catholic Church recognize Santa Muerte?

The cult of Santa Muerte remains controversial and has been condemned by the Roman Catholic Church. In 2013, the Vatican’s culture minister, Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, declared Mexico’s folk saint “blasphemous” and said she should not be part of any religion.

Why does the Catholic Church condemn Santa Muerte?

A senior Vatican official has condemned the cult of Santa Muerte, or Holy Death, in Mexico as “blasphemous”. The president of the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Culture, Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, said worshipping Santa Muerte was a “degeneration of religion”.

What does the Catholic Church say about Santa Muerte?

The Catholic Church has condemned the cult of Santa Muerte in Mexico and Latin America as blasphemous and satanic, calling it a “degeneration of religion”.

What happens when you worship Santa Muerte?

Devotees of Santa Muerte pray with rosaries, go on pilgrimages, and place offerings like apples, cigars, and candles on her altars. The cult of Santa Muerte is generally very similar to other saint worship in Mexican folk Catholicism.

Who worships Santa Muerte?

There are very few popular saints who have this power; the sacred lady is one of those rare deities. It seems that efforts are made to identify Santa Muerte as being mainly venerated by drug traffickers, smugglers, prostitutes and gangsters.

What religion is La Santa Muerte?

Sullivan Chair in Catholic Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University and author of “Devoted to Death: Santa Muerte, the Skeleton Saint,” told The National Catholic Review. Santa Muerte, and the people who worship her, are much maligned, often associated with the region’s narco underworld.

Where did Santa Muerte originate?

The Santa Muerte, also known as Santisima Muerte, is the beloved goddess of death whose origins date back to the pre-Hispanic period of Mexico.

Who came up with Santa Muerte?

Mr Chesnut says more and more devotees have started incorporating Santa Muerte into Day of the Dead celebrations over the past five years. Although many Mexicans see no connection between the two, both are thought to stem from Mictecacihuatl, an Aztec goddess who presided over a festival of death every August.

What can you not do with the Santa Muerte?

They are warned not to make promises to Santa Muerte that they cannot keep or risk feeling her wrath. Other altars can be found throughout Mexico City’s Centro Historico where believers leave red apples, alcohol, tobacco, flowers and candles as offerings to la flaquita (“the skinny one”), as she is sometimes called.

What does the Santa Muerte ask for?

All types of people pray to the saint, asking for a variety of miracles, she said. “I had a lady who came in and told me that after she prayed to it, her husband was able to avoid deportation.” Devotees pray to Santa Muerte for healing, career success and love, as well as revenge against enemies.