By Tiana Dora Escarcega
Two minutes before getting the idea of writing this piece, I had a conversation with my mother, a Mexican woman about Mexican cults and how they transcend a lot of the typical ideas that we as an American society have regarding cults. To further broaden your perspective as to what cults are, the official definition according to the Oxford dictionary is “a relatively small group of people having beliefs or practices, especially relating to religion, that are regarded by others as strange or sinister or as imposing excessive control over members.” However, this definition can be interpreted to mean many things depending on the cultural and global context of certain cults and who is acknowledging said cults. “Relatively small” can be 20,000 people when observing on a global scale. “Strange and sinister” can also be relative as different people have an idea of what that means. This was part of the conversation that me and my mother had as we spoke about the ideas that native Mexicans have regarding ancestral beliefs. It is often believed by current catholic Mexicans that the ancestral beliefs of southern Mexico are strange, but essential to preserving cultural heritage and history and therefore, not “sinister”. This is in contrast to a lot of ideas that we as Americans have regarding cults as we tend to see a lot of other atypical religions as “culty”. So much so that the Spanish definition of “cult” translates to something completely different than the English/American definition, that being “Endowed with the qualities that come from culture or instruction.” Meaning that by definition, ancestral practices such as worshiping Mayan and Aztec gods are considered “cults” according to Mexican standards. The difference in definitions almost implies that cults are seen as wrong and negative in the U.S, but cultural and essential to preserving religion in Mexico. This begs the question, why has this negative connotation not taken effect in Mexican culture? And if it has in recent years, why?
I had a conversation with my Mexican grandmother, a devoted catholic, shortly after writing the first paragraph of this article in which we spoke about the ideas that a lot of catholics have regarding cults and how they have changed throughout the years. We spoke about two big “cults” in Mexico, their beliefs and how we as a mexican society now view these cults. However before continuing, I must emphasize that the following cults I am mentioning are by definition cults according to la Real Academia Española. I understand that a lot of American readers may not truly consider some of the following cults as “real” cults as they do not fit the American definition, and so therefore to understand the following article you must understand and adapt to the Mexican definition of the word. One of the cults that we spoke of was La Santa Muerte and NarcoSatanists (which are often interchangeable) who in recent years have gained more traction due to the rise of drug trafficking, sex work and homelessness. These cults are known for having devoted followers who partake in illicit activities that may involve crimes or negative ritualistic practices and are based in catholic beliefs and practices despite being condemned by the catholic church. Meaning that practices may closely resemble those of the catholic religion. It is important to note that Mexico is very heavily rooted in catholicism and is arguably the most catholic country in the world with 97.9 million members, making up 78% of the population. Moreover, these cults such as Santeria and Narcosatanism are mainly based in the North of Mexico in states such as Baja California, Baja California Sur, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Nuevo León, Sinaloa, Sonora, and Tamaulipas, although the practice can and has expanded to southern states. This geographical boundary is directly tied to the rise of drug cartels taking power within these states and associating their power, wealth and success with these said cults, often offering objects or acts of sacrifice to secure their success. It is also important to note that these beliefs are cultural, religious and specific to Mexico. Now, the stark difference in which the American society would typically view these beliefs as opposed to the way Mexican societies do is very different. In the sense that mexican natives, catholic or not, despite not necessarily believing in Santeria or Satanism (which are similar, but different) often respect the beliefs of said cults. As opposed to those beliefs of American societies that may not respect such cults or consider them to be real or valid religions. I strongly believe that this is because of the strong religious and catholic presence within Mexico. Because of this, a catholic/religious traditional natives will often believe in the powers that santeria and satanism hold, whether it is unknowingly or not. Often fearing such powers. Its funny, my grandmother when speaking on the topic claimed to not believe in such energies as she believed they are used for bad, however she claimed to have a sense of respect for said beliefs as she believes that these said beliefs can manifest and come true and so therefore she refuses to speak ill of such cults. This form of thinking is clearly based in fear and religious beliefs. It is important to note that this respect also goes both ways, as it is very common for those who follow santeria and satanism to respect and even follow certain practices related to catholic/christian beliefs or ancestral practices. This form of thinking isn’t something that we see quite often in American culture, specifically in christian denominations as they are often more condemning to such forms of thinking and beliefs. In recent years we have seen a rise in christian beliefs and Christian nationalism that often condemns practices that may be associated with Mexican cults and are often demonized and believed to be evil. This includes tarot cards, alters, crystals, rituals, horoscopes, etc. These different perspectives directly tie into the spread or lack of said cults/religions. Santeria is arguably one of the largest cults in Mexico and continues to grow every day, as opposed to American cults that tend to stay stagnant and never grow on a nationwide scale. Scientology for example, has remained stagnant and hasn’t seemed to grow in recent years, remaining at 22,000 to 55,000 members in the last year, as opposed to Santeria which has 10-12 million members/ followers, continuing to grow throughout the years and even spreading to the united states in recent years with the rise of Mexican migrants. At this point we have established that retention within Mexican cults seems to be more popular as opposed to those cults of American societies. Mormonism, a cult by our definition, in recent years has declined in active members. I understand that it would be unrealistic to compare santeria and mormonism as they differ in beliefs and connotations, but it is because of this that the topic becomes more compelling. Why is it that Mexican cults often associated with dark, ritualistic and evil practices have more followers and continue to grow, than a religious cult with beliefs that are arguably “good”, strange I will say, but overall based in morality?
As I mentioned before, one of the biggest motivators as to why these cults are often respected and accepted within Mexican culture, is fear. This is where this piece may be controversial for me as the writer, as I am going to talk about the rise of drug cartels in Mexico. You may wonder what that has to do with cults in Mexico and the way they are viewed, but it unfortunately has everything to do with the culture surrounding cults. Drug cartels are infamous for smuggling drugs, murders, kidnapping, human and sex trafficking and these said drug cartels are composed of young men who often come from poor catholic homes, instilling certain ideologies into these men that may be associated with what is now known as narcosatanism and santeria, a practice heavily based in catholicism. Unfortunately these cartels run such elaborate and successful operations that ruin families on a daily basis whether it be economically or through personal affiliation, as it is very common for young men to want to join drug cartels in hopes of advancing economically. This system also corrupts many of the most influential political parties, politicians, government officials, police departments and even local businesses, further expanding the power that drug cartels have over Mexico and its people. They are undeniably the most influential powers in Mexico, so much so that some cartels are known to invest money in infrastructure and small communities, often doing more for communities than their own official government. This is a huge driving factor as to why Narcosatanism and Santeria are so heavily respected in Mexican culture. The symbolism, music, beliefs and traditions are almost worshiped in a sense, by everyone. However this worship stems from fear of persecution, death and torture. There are also heavy ties to criminals being seen as saints and often idolized as people who can grant miracles, good or bad, further propping these beliefs back up onto these pedestals. In October of 2019, El Chapo’s son, known as Ovidio Guzman Lopez AKA “El Raton” was captured by the Mexican military in an attempt to arrest him because of his drug-trafficking related crimes. Upon capturing Ovidio, a large-scale battle between the Mexican military and The Sinaloa Cartel broke out in the city of Culican, Sinaloa resulting in various deaths, escaped prisoners, arson related crimes and destruction in the city. Because of the bloodshed and murder, the Mexican military eventually let Ovidio go in hopes of stopping the bloodshed and shootings. However, if you pay attention to the video/mugshot (shown to the right) of Ovidio’s capture, you can see a necklace tied around his neck of a saint known as El Santo Niño Atocha or Holy Infant Atocha, who is known as the saint of the persecuted or the saint of prisoners. He appears to those in need of help when in unfortunate situations in which they might be restricted physically, socially, or economically. Despite being a catholic figure, the saint is used by criminals to aid in their freedom from persecution or restriction. The unlikely and almost unbelievable act of Ovidio being freed shortly after being detained was seen as a result of not only the bloodshed, but also of that said saint. The use of the saint for criminal purposes is directly tied to “brujeria” AKA witchcraft, which can be interchangeable and blended with Santeria and Narcosatanism. This further expanded the fear within the citizens of narcos and the power that they hold. It is no surprise that Mexican citizens/natives are so casual and accepting of such beliefs and practices, it quite literally affects the outcome of people’s livelihoods and well-being. Speaking out about such things can and will cost you your life. These cartels do not care for the lives of the innocent and will do anything and everything including partaking in cult-like religions to avoid persecution, harm, loss and economic failure. Even if they have to kill those who stand up to the wrong doings of their industry. It is because of this that documentation of this is limited and almost non-existent as journalists are often persecuted for speaking of such things. The reality is that no one is safe. Especially journalists, reporters and those who run media outlets reporting the subject.
The way crime is handled is significantly different between the U.S and Mexico and the reasons transcend any and all political and legal movements and ideologies. Its culture, its spiritual, its religious and its unknown. It is untouched and it is most importantly, dangerous. America is known for their interference and regulation of religion and its role in their government. We have what is known as the separation of church and state, established in the first amendment, prohibiting any and all blending of religion and legislation. While yes, Mexico does have a firm separation of church and state, the legality of it all is questionable when you have drug cartels running the states and local governments, giving these said cartels the power to enforce their ideologies unknowingly.
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