Do voodoo followers believe in God or the devil?

Question

Is buying a voodoo charm a sin? If it is ok to buy one, can you buy one and still believe in God?

Answer 1

Voodoo is a practice, not a religion and if you are Christian this is expressly forbidden. I would not recommend getting the charm if you are worried about it.

For the record, I am not Christian and have no problem with *true* voodoo though I do not take part in or really have a full working knowledge of it. As with any practice it can be used for good or evil and if it's used for good (by-proxy healing) it can be wonderful but if it's used to harm (like you see on TV) then it's bad.  

Answer 2

BOTH

Answer 3

They believe in both plus a few others.

I had a voodoo experience once when I told an old Haitian woman that I no longer wanted the morning papers delivered, I had the gastro for 6 days until I let her deliver it again.  

Answer 4

Correction, SaveThePits! - Voodoo IS a legitimate religion. Hoodoo is the practice of traditional folk magick.

The Voodoo religion holds that there is one God, the creator of the universe. Subordinate to this God are the Loas, lesser deities or saints who act as messengers between the Voodoo practitioner and God. (link below has full info.)

Essentially, it is a mix of Catholicism and old African faiths and practices.

If you follow a religion that forbids and brands anything other than it's own as "evil" - like Christianity, well, you have your answer. I assume you have some attachment to these cliched beliefs, as you lumped the preordained theory of God and the Devil as a possibility.

Answer 5

No, voodoo followers do not believe in Satan or h**l. And they also do not believe in karma...the notion that every action we take is always returned to us. As for buying a voodoo charm, I'd consider the intent behind it. Why couldn't one still believe in "God"? It's not like you're changing your faith or belief.

Any type of amulet or charm is only effective if the owner truly believes it is. On a personal note, this is actually a refreshing question. It shows that you are quite open minded to other spiritual faiths and many more need to display that same acceptance. I don't mean change religions or anything but a simple acceptance that it is a revered faith that many people follow. Too often, especially here at YA, people have a very closed mind set when it comes to another's beliefs and only there is only one way of looking at things...their's is THE way and everybody else has got it wrong.

Like I said, if you're concerned about a conflict in your faith, by buying a voodoo charm, remember it only has any power or significance if you allow it to. The most important part, though, is an honest examination of why you want to. If it merely a decorative piece of jewellery that you think looks cool, then that's what it will be for you. If you harbor any other ideas about it being magical in some way, all I can add is beware. That becomes a self fulfilling prophecy.

Answer 6

Voodoo is mostly a hodge-opodge, misho-masho of rituals, mythos, charms and happenings taken from mostly Caribbean island practices. While I perch at the top of the Rockies, I have a few friends in northern Mississippi and their family came from Louisiana and practice voodoo. My friends hold themselves to be "Christian lite" and own crosses, a bible and even attend service on Christmas eve yearly. TRUE Christians will tell you, most likely, it is sinful...I think it is what you invest in said charm that makes the determination.