Macumba
Macumba (also Makumba) is an Afro-Brazilian religion, but more detached from its African roots and less clearly defined than Candomblé. The term Macumba comes from a tree in Madagascar and Mozambique under which the ethnic religious gatherings took place.
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Often Macumba only means the multiplicity of religious folk traditions of African origin living in Brazil, which are not only limited to the population of black-African origin, but have also penetrated far into "white" strata of the population. Macumba often exists alongside or in syncretistically mixed way together with the popular Catholic faith of wide parts of the Brazilian society, even if more Europe- and North America-oriented layers often deny this.
In Macumba, witchcraft beliefs and fetishes play a big role. Not only white but also black magic belongs to Macumba. In the Macumba cult, the so-called "sons or daughters of the saints", under the guidance of a priest or priestess, contact ancestors and other spirits in a trance and convey their advice to the faithful in a "holy voice".
Macumba is a very negative term. If someone claims to be practicing macumba, a Christian Brazilian should avoid this person. Macumba is surrounded by similar mysterious ideas as Voodoo. Both originate from African religions and are also practiced in Cuba (Santería) in a slightly different form and under a different name.
However, Macumba is a further development of the former Bantu religions from Angola and Congo. These regions were strongly influenced by Christianity early on. Therefore, prayers and songs in Macumba are written in Portuguese instead of an African language. There is also a supreme being, as in Christianity. This is called Zumbi.
In the Macumba, a special connection with the dead is cultivated. Therefore, it is a death-centered religion, which distinguishes it from other Afro-Brazilian cults.
