Holy Death in the Time of Coronavirus: Santa Muerte, the Salubrious Saint
As Santa Muerte prayer cards and candles circulate in Mexico with petitions of protection against COVID-19, we consider death as doctor in these tumultuous times proving that the folk saint of death is not solely a narco-saint, as the press depicts, but is supplicated for miracles of COVID healing a...
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| Contributors: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
[2020]
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| In: |
International journal of Latin American religions
Year: 2020, Volume: 4, Issue: 2, Pages: 194-217 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Mexico
/ Santa Muerte
/ Healer
/ COVID-19 (Disease)
/ Pandemic
/ Patron saint
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| IxTheo Classification: | AD Sociology of religion; religious policy AG Religious life; material religion AZ New religious movements KBR Latin America |
| Further subjects: | B
Coronavirus
B Death B Healing B Mexico B Santa Muerte B folk saint |
| Online Access: |
Presumably Free Access Volltext (Resolving-System) |
| Summary: | As Santa Muerte prayer cards and candles circulate in Mexico with petitions of protection against COVID-19, we consider death as doctor in these tumultuous times proving that the folk saint of death is not solely a narco-saint, as the press depicts, but is supplicated for miracles of COVID healing and protection from the virus. We not only reveal the importance of religion for coping with pandemics but also focus on the notion of death as healing and as a giver of life. We decolonize knowledge of Santa Muerte and explore the saint’s syncretic origins, hailing not only from the European Grim Reaper during times of plague but also from Indigenous thanatological epistemologies that account for her dual powers of gifting life and also doling out death. |
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| ISSN: | 2509-9965 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: International journal of Latin American religions
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1007/s41603-020-00110-6 |