For 50,000Q, where did Pastor Benjamin take our team this
past week?
A.
Apple orchard
B. Butter manufacturing plant
C. Cantaloupe farm
D. Witch’s cave
Which is the right answer?
I mean, D is the right answer.
On day one of our time in Panajachel, Pastor Benjamin said
he was going to take our team to a witch’s cave. Yep.
Your reaction now is probably the same one that we had. The topic of witchcraft came up multiple
times in the coming weeks because both Ben and his wife were heavily involved
before becoming Christians, a large portion of businesses in Panajachel
practice witchcraft, and Ben shared stories of working in homes where idols and
items of witchcraft were on display.
Finally the day came, and we loaded onto a Chicken Bus to go
up the mountain. (“Chicken Bus” is a
name affectionately given to the public transportation buses because of their
tendencies to appear like they are playing chicken with oncoming traffic.) We hopped off the back of the bus at our
stop-I hadn’t done that since fire escape practices in elementary school-and
hiked a little ways down the mountain to a cave which had a black
entrance. As we drew nearer I realized
that smoke was coming out of the entrance which was the cause of the
artificially blackened rocks.
My exposure to witchcraft had been limited to Halloween
movies involving cauldrons, the Wizard of Oz, and potions. The images my retina was capturing to send to
my brain didn’t match my expectations.
(Note for future World Racers:
Your expectations are usually wrong, so sometimes don’t even bother
having them.) A man with a turban-like
head apparel and jeans was chanting in Spanish and another tongue prayers to
the gods around a fire containing eggs, meat, beer, and other everyday
items. The recipients of the witchcraft
were two normal looking businessmen, had paid the witch to perform the burning,
were professed Catholics, and I didn’t hear any spooky soundtrack at any
point.
Our pastor explained that witchcraft in Guatemala is
relatively common. It typically plays
out in the way we observed: men or women
who are seeking something pay a witch to perform a burning for them. We saw items like raw meat, cigars, candles,
sugar, eggs, soda, beer, and canned food placed in a circle and lit on fire. (They would toss the canned food in the fire
and when it blew up-surprise surprise-they interpreted that as the gods
accepting their offerings.) They also
used potions that could be bought at local corner stores-it looked like water
and food coloring-for things such as financial gain, shutting someone’s lips,
thwarting enemies, and similar desires.
I began the day without much apprehension because Benjamin
had made it clear that we have authority in the Lord over demonic activity, but
I left feeling like it was all a great distortion that has continued for
generations. Some who practice
witchcraft also proclaim the love of Jesus.
Some have idols in their homes for the approximately 23 gods worshipped
here. On one hand some of the rituals
reminded me of my own practices: prayer,
crying out to God, and seeking the influence of a higher power. But this witchcraft is pure distortion at
best.
The day elicited feelings of pity. I watched as an old man performed his own
ritualistic burning. Ben said that he
had probably been raised around witchcraft, so he was familiar enough with
witchcraft to burn on his own behalf. I
thought about how much food and offerings he had literally reduced to ashes
over his lifetime. As we left the cave a
family ranging from little children to grandmothers were walking into the cave
carrying boxes of items to be burnt.
They weren’t dressed in Hollywood apparel, their noses weren’t any
longer than normal, and bitterness didn’t flow from their veins. In fact they were downright cheery.
A theme that can be deduced from Frederick Douglass’
autobiography is that “Ignorance maintained slavery.” The literacy rate in Guatemala is 69%. (For comparison sake, it’s 80% in Honduras,
90% in Vietnam, and 99% in the United States.
Having taught in the US, I know that what is deemed literate is barely
enough to get by.) I wonder how many
Guatemalans who confess to be Christians even have the ability to read the
Bible, let alone to discern that the witchcraft they practice is not of God. (Obvious side note: Guatemala is a third world country and most
of its residents don’t have much money, let
alone money to burn.)
The God that loves me way more that I could ever love in
return took care of all the sacrifices necessary.
Here is my potential tagline for an advertising campaign for
the Bible: “It’s clear, present,
accessible, applicable, and distortion free.”
Then again, sales aren’t exactly hurting, so it’s probably not
necessary. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_books
