I recently had the opportunity to observe an Umbanda worship ceremony. The Umbanda religion is a mixture of ancient tribal African beliefs as well as Christian beliefs. The worship service I attended was extremely fascinating. The service took place in a house with a large open room in the front. In the corners of the room were two altars that stood opposite one-another. The altar on the left consisted of red objects and images that I am unfamiliar with. The altar on the right consisted of statues of Jesus, Mary, and various saints of the Christian tradition. The participants of the service were primarily females of various ages. The leader of the group was a woman dressed in white; she was introduced to me as a Holy Woman. They began the worship service by kneeling at the altar to the right. Next, they began chanting and singing in a circle. Afterward, they began to dance and sing in a circle until a deity or spirit possessed one of them. When a person became possessed, they moved to the center and began to prophesy to and greet each person in the room. John the Baptist was one of the spirits possessed a woman and greeted me. Unfortunately, due to the language barrier, I have no idea what he said. I really wish I had a better understanding of Portuguese!
I am not sure what to make of the worship service but I am glad that I was able to witness it. I want to say I believe that the worshipers were actually communing with deities and spirits but I do not believe. I want to believe because I am so fascinated with and envious of their cultural memory. They have held on to a belief and a tradition that extends back to Africa, prior to slavery. I am inspired to see their African roots prevailing despite hundreds of years of slavery and oppression. I, too, long to remember Africa.
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