Cuba's Santeria priests see unrest in 2010
By PAUL HAVEN
Associated Press Writer
HAVANA -- A panel of Afro-Cuban priests are predicting a year of social
and political unrest, struggles for power, treachery and coups d'etat,
and they say the world will see the death of an inordinate number of
political leaders in 2010.
In the forecast announced Saturday, they recommended older leaders move
aside and make room for the young, a politically delicate statement in a
country that has been led by brothers Fidel and Raul Castro for more
than half a century.
"The older generations should pass their experience on to young people
because times change, and the younger generation is better prepared,"
said Victor Bentancourt, one of the island's leading Santeria priests,
or babalawos. "Time is growing short" for such a change.
The priests announced their forecast following a secretive New Year's
Eve ritual in which they performed religious chants and sacrificed
chickens, goats and other animals.
A rival Santeria group, which enjoys official sanction from the
government, came out with its own predictions later Saturday, saying
2010 would be a year of improving health.
Santeria, which mixes Catholicism with the traditional African Yoruba
faith, is followed by many people in Cuba, where about a third of the
11.2 million population is of African descent.
The ceremony in Cuba is one of several New Year's religious traditions
in Latin America. Indigenous shamans in Peru last week performed
good-luck rituals for peace in 2010, asking for eased tensions between
Venezuela and Colombia and for President Barack Obama to normalize
U.S.-Cuba relations.
Mexico's "Brujo Mayor" or "Great Witch" is scheduled to announce his
predictions on world events and celebrity affairs on Monday, and
Venezuela's Santeria priests are expected to make their own New Year's
predictions.
Cuba's communist government has tolerated Santeria and other religious
practices for years, though it long denied religious leaders official
recognition. In the 1990s the government began to allow greater
religious freedoms, and today even some members of the Communist Party
openly practice Santeria.
As the priests discussed their findings in a crumbling building on the
outskirts of Havana, dozens of passers-by came to the front porch to
examine a sign posted outside that announced the forecast - known as the
"Letter of the Year."
As in past years, Betancourt and the other spiritual leaders declined to
say what their predictions meant for the Castro brothers specifically,
but their 2010 forecast for "Cuba and the world" would seem ominous for
any octogenarian leader.
In their prediction for New Year's 2008, however, the priests warned of
forest fires, war and an increased threat of robbery - but did not
mention that the ailing Fidel Castro would step down as president.
Fidel Castro, 83, handed power over to Raul, 78. The elder Castro
remains head of the Communist Party, and often comments on current
events in essays published in the state-run media.
The priests said 2010 would bring "dramatic changes in the social order"
and "an increase in the fight for power," as well as a "high number of
deaths" of political, intellectual and religious leaders. To highlight
their point, the priests wrote the word "POLITICAL" in all capital
letters in a statement they read out.
They said the year could be summed up with the saying: "The King is
dead; long live the King" the traditional shout announcing a monarchical
succession.
The priests also warned that the year would bring "treachery and
usurpation" at the highest levels of governments, and that there could
be coups d'etat or other sudden political changes. They also warned of
the threat of climate change, disease and war, among other things.
The priests said their religious ceremony revealed 2010 to be the year
of Baba Eyiobe, a Santeria sign that means "double salvation," as well
as the divinities Obatala and Oya.
According to Santeria teachings, Obatala is a female divinity
responsible for the creation of human beings, as well as the patron of
reason and intelligence. Oya is the goddess of storms and wind, as well
as ancestral spirits.
In 2009, the priests predicted a year of conflict between neighboring
countries and warned of the necessity to foment respect within families.
Another priest, Lazaro Cuesta, stressed that Santeria does not teach
that the year end predictions are fated to occur, and that there is
still time for the world to avoid the unrest and conflict forecast in
the ceremony.
"The future is in all of our hands, from the youngest child to the most
powerful leaders," he said.
Cuba's Santeria priests see unrest in 2010 - Cuba - MiamiHerald.com (2
January 2010)
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/americas/cuba/story/1406590.html
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