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Governing Spirits: Religion, Miracles, and Spectacles in Cuba and Puerto Rico, 1898-1956

Online ISBN:
9781469604688
Print ISBN:
9780807831410
Publisher:
University of North Carolina Press
Book

Governing Spirits: Religion, Miracles, and Spectacles in Cuba and Puerto Rico, 1898-1956

Published online:
24 July 2014
Published in print:
17 December 2007
Online ISBN:
9781469604688
Print ISBN:
9780807831410
Publisher:
University of North Carolina Press

Abstract

Freedom of religion did not come easily to Cuba or Puerto Rico. Only after the arrival of American troops during the Spanish–American War were non-Catholics permitted to practice their religions openly and to proselytize. When government efforts to ensure freedom of worship began, reformers on both islands rejoiced, believing that an era of regeneration and modernization was upon them. But as new laws went into effect, critics voiced their dismay at the rise of popular religions. This book explores the changing relationship between regulators and practitioners in neocolonial Cuba and Puerto Rico. Spiritism, Santeria, and other African-derived traditions were typically characterized in sensational fashion by the popular press as “a plague of superstition.” Examining seven episodes between 1898 and the Cuban Revolution when the public demanded official actions against “misbelief,” it finds that when outbreaks of superstition were debated, matters of citizenship were usually at stake. The book links the circulation of spectacular charges of witchcraft and miracle-making to anxieties surrounding newly expanded citizenries that included people of color. It also contributes to the understanding of vernacular religions by moving beyond questions of national or traditional origins to illuminate how boundaries among hybrid practices evolved in a process of historical contingencies.

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