Exorcism Rituals On the Rise as Way to Battle Evil of Mexican Cartels Deborah Hastings - New York Daily News
go to original January 20, 2014

The BBCs Vladimir Hernandez follows the Mexican priests who believe they can fight the evil of drug trafficking through the ancient Catholic practice of exorcism. (BBC/BreakingNewsWorld)

Exorcism is on the rise as a weapon against the ever-escalating violence of drug cartels, priests and religious experts say. Though no one keeps statistics, priests say the heightened frequency is fueled by the growing popularity of Santa Muerte (St. Death), the favorite saint of narcotics syndicates and about 10 million followers around the world, an estimated 2 million of them in Mexico.

The female folk icon is depicted as a skeleton shrouded in a cloak, a la the Grim Reaper, in statues that are ubiquitous in Mexican shops and roadside stands. Sometimes sporting a tiara, sometimes covered in cash, Santa Muerte is credited with everything from bringing wealth and health to protecting illegal drugs and the cartel criminals who ferry them.

The Vatican has condemned Santa Muerte’s followers as a Satanic cult. In Mexico, priests blame her cartel worshippers for bringing unprecedented acts of evil on ordinary citizens.

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