It is in the indigenous religions of Africa where the holy rites of sacrifice originated, and are still extant. It is interesting that the same exact animals utilized in Vodoun’s propitiation, atonement and ancestral ceremonies are the same exact ones demanded in the Old Testament; in the book of Leviticus- (“Levites” meaning followers of the ‘serpent mother spirit’”).
Because African religions were the dominate transforming, experiential force popular throughout the ancient world, the demonization of its powerful clerics began during the rise of the competing Roman Church and its colonial/economic ambitions in Africa. It has continued unabated in the West ever since. However, the practice of making holy offerings to the Vodoun has been the sacred rites since the beginning of time, and will always remain an integral aspect of this ancient tradition.
