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With such a wide array of formative factors, as well as the eventual removal of the spiritual aspects of authentic Black Belt Hoodoo, we encounter a significant challenge when attempting to nail down any sort of common beliefs.
Slave communities on plantations consisted of people originating from many different areas of Africa, all with their own indigenous beliefs. Beneath the outward differences of practice were underlying culturospiritual commonalities that allowed for interconnection and the formation of a new type of healing and Conjure built upon the authentic African practices. Among those common beliefs were a reverence for family connections and ancestral wisdom, the veneration of elders, the communal nurturing of children, ritual water immersion for spiritual cleansing and transition, a respect for nature, and the use of ritual animal sacrifice. By finding their common ground, they also found their strength, and from that very genesis, the practices of Hoodoo that would ultimately endure began to grow.
In the modern presentation of Hoodoo, individual theologies shift not only from one branch of practice to the next, but from one rootworker to the next. The absence of spiritual attachment to the magical processes of Hoodoo opens the door for each worker to connect with their own image of the Divine and to layer that onto the practical applications.
Syncretization of Catholic and Protestant Christianity onto African traditional religious beliefs was a vital step in the sustainability of Hoodoo. The Christian Church was sufficiently aggressive that had the practices not incorporated the veneration of Catholic saints and the use of Protestant praise modalities, Hoodoo would not likely have survived.
The assignment of Catholic saints and biblical figures such as Moses and Solomon gave Hoodoo a strong pantheon of divine intercessors that legitimized practice within a predominantly Christian culture. Author and journalist Zora Neale Hurston said, “Moses was the finest Hoodoo man in the world” (Hurston 2009, 114), and “All hold that the Bible is the great conjure book in the world” (Hurston 2008, 280). The miracles Moses channeled from God to free the slaves of Egypt resonated strongly with the African American slaves and became a representation of Hoodoo’s supernatural power.
Not only are scriptures used as incantations, but the Bible itself is revered as a magical talisman and can be carried for protection or left open to specific scriptures used for Conjure work. Often in the latter use, the Bible is positioned to face a compass direction sympathetic to the effect the practitioner wishes to create.
The foundation of Hoodoo remains primarily Christian, either Catholic or Protestant. Many rootworkers hotly protest the inclusion of non-Christian practitioners such as Wiccans and others in the Pagan world who practice Hoodoo.
Hedge Witches, Wiccans, and other Pagans who participate in spellwork and focused energy manifestation techniques often embrace Hoodoo, drawn to its simple processes, easily obtainable tools, and the similarity of healing and magical techniques when compared to other forms of folk magic. The Celtic Cunning People, for instance, could study the practice of Black Belt Hoodoo healing and conjuring and immediately feel at home, quickly understanding the terminology, processes, and applications. Someone who works with poppets finds Voodoo dolls and Hoodoo doll babies familiar and has a basic idea of how to use them. The crossroads concept, a powerful component of Hoodoo work, is the sacred domain of the Greek Goddess Hecate, so any follower of Hecate will immediately relate to the veneration of the crossroads and the magic created there.
Relatability is the strongest pull of Hoodoo, and it has within it components familiar to magical people from multiple paths. Many feel that their previous magical experience led them to choose Hoodoo as their preferred path, for the ability to blend all the techniques they previously learned into a single practice.
One aspect of Hoodoo that has not changed since the Black Belt days is the use of herbs, stones, resins, roots, animal body parts, and body fluids such as semen, menstrual blood, urine, and saliva. Skin, hair, and nail trimmings also bind the magical work to a party involved with the magical process.
The closer to its natural state, the stronger the energy in an herb, root, or blossom. Rosemary that you grow, cultivate, harvest, dry, and store yourself has a stronger energy pattern than a container of rosemary purchased at the local grocery store. The grocery store version will fulfill the needs of the magical work, but the materials created by the hand of the rootworker always carry a bigger magical punch. Most Hoodoo practitioners use dried versions of their natural ingredients for the convenient storage.
There is almost no concept you can point to and say “All rootworkers believe this” or “All Hoodoo practitioners believe that.” Philosophies within Hoodoo are as varied as those who practice it. It is the methodology that is similar, rather than any structured belief system. Even in practical application, traditions vary significantly according to how the person was taught or under what rootworker they apprenticed.
The one prevailing idea that I see manifested in most rootworkers I know is one of personal accountability. Most Hoodoo workers I know embrace the belief that we all make choices, magically and mundanely, and if we do not achieve the desired outcome or worse, if we manifest an undesired outcome, it is up to us and no one else to extricate ourselves and thereby to create a different outcome. There is also no one to blame or praise but ourselves for what we manifest in our lives. No one will take care of us other than ourselves and our own tribe, familial or chosen. We must own both our victories and our mistakes in life and do whatever it takes to heal what we can, accept and release what we cannot, atone where we should, and forever work to improve ourselves, our lives, and our contribution to the human species. We must rise out of any adversity. We must adapt and evolve as life demands. We must accept the new while honoring the past.
A culture and practice that fails to adapt to the surrounding realities will not survive, much less thrive. The same can be said about individuals. The ability of Hoodoo to shift and adapt despite oppressive and forceful restructuring is a testimony to the devotion and perseverance of those who believed in it and wanted it in their lives. It is both our responsibility and our privilege to carry forward the heart of Rootworking, honoring the past and embracing the future, with the same determination and persistence demonstrated by those who went before us.