Bizarre, Criminal law, International, Religion, Society

New York Mother “Cures” Daughter in Religious Ceremony By Burning Her

180px-Ченстоховская_икона_Божией_МатериA New York mother in Queens “cured” her daughter in a religious ceremony by burning the six-year-old daughter Frantzcia Saintil and leaving her scarred for life. The mother, Marie Lauradin, 29, was charged with assault and endangering a child this week.

The mother was born in Haiti and the ceremony appears to have had voodoo origins. Frantzcia’s grandmother doused the flames with frigid water, but then did not call 911 — simply sending the girl with burns over one-fourth of her body including her face, torso, and legs, to bed.

The grandmother, Sylvenie Thessier, 70, is also expected to be charged. A friend currently known as “Sketch” is also expected to face charges.

Doctors put the little girl in a medically-induced coma to deal with the extensive burning.

The ritual was believed to involve the “Loa.” Loa are believed to be spirits who can intervene to help humans. The mother reportedly poured rum in a circle around the girl and lighted it. She then poured some on the girl’s head and then pushed her into the burning circle. As shown above in the picture, the loa Erzulie Dantor is often depicted in Christian terms.

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18 thoughts on “New York Mother “Cures” Daughter in Religious Ceremony By Burning Her”

  2. Shire,

    Do some research, it does have to do with this story. I already pointed you in the right direction.

  3. @Buddha:

    I’ll admit to being a Christian, and I would be a fool to be one if I didn’t also believe it were the most accurate set of beliefs available (although I recognize and respect that you and others who aren’t Christian obviously feel differently). I also know that people have done horrible or really dumb things in the name of Christianity.

    Nonetheless, I don’t see what any of that has to do with my argument, other than as an ad hominem attack. My point was that an action by a non-Christian is being associated with Christians for no apparent reason, and I wanted Mr. Turley to explain his choice of photos when one of a voodoo symbol or ceremony would have been far more accurate. Arguing that a religion has made mistakes (or deliberate actions), even in the present day, does not excuse associating it with mistakes (or deliberate actions) it did NOT commit, any more than it’s excusable to let people assume a shoplifter also shot the store clerk.

    Speaking of which…

    @Mike Spindell:

    As to that, I and some of my friends have a joke: “A Christian Scientist is neither a Christian nor a scientist. Discuss.” So-called “Christian Science” rejects several key Christian concepts (and its understanding of medical science is laughable, although I’m pretty sure you don’t need me to convince you of that). I have never been to a church that accepts their teachings about either, and I personally reject them all.

    Prayer has its place, but God created a universe with laws, and the study of these laws and all that’s developed from them is a recognition of that truth. (Remember, Newton, founded of the scientific method, was a faithful Christian.) I for one find science another fascinating way to look at God, like an anthropologist would study what a culture has made.

  5. Buddha,

    I’m assuming this is just a case of the American assumption that religion equals Christianity, Islam, and Atheists combined with a lack of historical knowledge.

  6. Shire Nomad and rick james,

    Your assumption that Christianity is “correct” over any other religion when it comes to stupidity is showing. It’s called bias. It’s one of the reasons why religion was not integrated into the state by our Founding Fathers, but rather expressly prohibited. No one is not saying Islam doesn’t have issues, but that sword the pro-Christians keep pulling out is two-edged. “Us poor Christians are persecuted! Whine whine whine.”

    Listen up, screwheads.

    ALL religions have been misused by men to their own ends at one time or another that having nothing to do with Godliness and everything to do with ego, greed, evil and mental illness – EVEN CHRISTIANITY. It’s not all of Islam being the problem any more than it’s all of Christianity or Judaism being the problem. IT’S INDIVIDUAL BAD ACTORS OR SMALL GROUPS OPERATING UNDER THE GUISE OF LEGAL AND/OR RELIGIOUS SANCTION. Most people of every religion want YOU to just go away and let them live without having YOU try to force YOUR beliefs upon them. It’s their decision, not yours. Quit trying to sell your God, no matter what you call it, to others and you’ll probably notice a marked drop in the level of conflict you experience. Quit being so defensive about Jesus and Mohamed and Yaweh and Cthulu. He doesn’t require your defense except from zealots of any flavor and that’s only because zealots are dangerous to all in contravention of the concept that “God is Love”. Even then it’s a nicety, not a necessity. And I’ll tell you why . . .

    Even if any of them are/were real, do you really think a divine being needs YOUR help? If you do, well, that’s some ego you’ve got there, Ace, and you should have it cut out before it metastasizes. Because you’re nuts if you think a GOD needs YOUR mortal help. By definition, you’d only be good at getting in the way when dealing with a being not constrained by physics.

  7. For anyone interested in why JT included that picture I suggest you look into Our Lady of Częstochowa and Ezili Dantor.

  8. rick james & Shire Nomad,
    So where would you place Christian Science & faith healing on the religious spectrum?

  9. There’s nothing bizarre at all with using the christian icon for this entry. Mojo has pointed out one meshing of Catholicism with indigenous relgions but most westerenrs are familiar with some others–christmas and easter. The christmas tree and easter eggs come from the “pagan” traditions which Catholics adopted to make christianity more easily assimilated into certain parts of Europe (ditto for most of the saints).

    The Catholic church in Russia is all about icons and anscestor worship at the same time. Cultural and religious traditions mix all the time. Geesh–I just passed the local unitarian church (which isn’t supposed to have any creeds) and it had a bid crown of christ on the outside bulletin and a headline–come worship with us! Well, that’s not exactly true to the idea of unitarianism.

    This links into the idea that only the Muslim religion brings out some rather bad actions in people. Obviously, there is no rational basis for this idea.

    Seems like one person posted under different names.

  10. Lotta K

    Thank you that was interesting. I prefer to read as opposed to listen to. Maybe says something about my make up, besides bad hearing and getting more mature. Nah, I have just always read faster than most.

  12. This sounds like a form of Santeria, a Caribbean-based religion that combines early slave rituals with the Roman Catholic and Native American forms of religious belief, and so the appearance of Christian symbols and images would be in keeping with its origins.

    There are so many horrors committed in the name of religious belief; mutilation, honor killings, ritual abuse, and it does call into question what we as a society are willing to tolerate in the name of democracy and the freedom to worship.

  14. Shire Nomad,

    On a side note, I am somewhat suspicious that you felt the need to use such an obviously Christian image. Combined with the title, the first impression anyone will get of this entry will be “Christian nutjob,” when in fact it was a completely different set of beliefs. It’d be like pairing a photo of Senator Smith with a headline “Congress Passes Really Stupid Law,” and then mixed into the article text the author concedes that Smith opposed the bill.

    rick james,

    What’s with the Christian image of Mary and baby Jesus when the nut-job’s action had nothing to do with Christ. . . .

    *****************************************

    It appears that this is an Icon of Russian Orthodox influence. I suppose you think that this was the way that the Christian Religion was always viewed. I assure you that it was not and until the Adoption stance taken by the Church. This occurred once they were secure in its own position. They originally were thought to be a cult and most of the practices were forced to be hidden from open practice. In other words, it was against the totalitarianism belief to allow any competition as an offense to the G-d in which they worshiped.

    I always stand to be corrected and will admit if I am wring. Buddha, Mesppo care to chime in?

  15. What’s with the Christian image of Mary and baby Jesus when the nut-job’s action had nothing to do with Christianity? Especially when you would NEVER post a picture of Muhammed EVEN IF the nutjob’s actions had to do with Islamic beliefs. Just asking.

  16. On a side note, I am somewhat suspicious that you felt the need to use such an obviously Christian image. Combined with the title, the first impression anyone will get of this entry will be “Christian nutjob,” when in fact it was a completely different set of beliefs. It’d be like pairing a photo of Senator Smith with a headline “Congress Passes Really Stupid Law,” and then mixed into the article text the author concedes that Smith opposed the bill.

  18. You know last night on Law and Order was a show depicting something such as this. As more and more different Nationalities come to this soil, we will be experiencing more and more religious clashes.

    I would say, shall we get prepared for some more limitation on strictly held religious beliefs? Ya want to play funky with that chicken? Wanna play with snakes? Go right aheah.

    But then this comes to mind about the parent child medical decisions. What about the Rabbi and the bris (or brit milah)?

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