Death as a Woman: The Rise of the Cult of Santa Muerte in Mexico and the United
States
Introduction
When visiting one of the many botanicas in the United States, it is hard not to find at
least one candle, statue, incense package or oil bottle depicting what looks like the Grim
Reaper; a robed and hooded skeleton bearing a scythe and, usually, a globe. This is the
unofficial Mexican folk saint Santa Muerte. Literally translated as “Holy Death” or “Saint
Death”, Santa Muerte is the female personification of death itself. Condemned as satanic
and persecuted by the media, Santa Muerte is nonetheless venerated and worshipped by
an ever-growing number of people (roughly 5 million) on both sides of the Mexican
border. She is widely known through the media as the patron saint of the Mexican drug
cartels, as statues and altars honoring this controversial saint have been uncovered at
the homes of numerous narcos. While the vast majority of her devotees are not affiliated
with the cartels as she is a multi-tasker with an ever-increasing list of specialties, Santa
Muerte is nonetheless a morally ambivalent figure who grants requests God would
probably frown upon.
In addition to being the patron saint of the Mexican drug war, the skeletal lady of death
is also an agent of vengeance to scorned women as well as protectress and source of
identification to LGBT persons, prostitutes and others of whom the Catholic Church does
not necessarily approve. This paper will introduce the multi-faceted cult of Santa
Muerte, also touching on issues of non-normative spirituality as a legitimating
framework, folk religiosity versus official religion, religious subjectification and the redefinition of hierarchies.
History and origins
Despite the rapidly growing number of adherents and the relative and increasing
visibility of the cult in both Mexican and U.S. media, Santa Muerte was mostly
worshipped in secret until recently. For this reason, the origins of the cult have yet to be
established to the satisfaction of all. While pre-Christian death worship in Mexico likely
paved the way for the figure of Santa Muerte, it seems more plausible that she originated
in medieval Western Europe. During the bubonic plague, when one-third of the
population perished, the looming presence and familiarity of death inspired artists and
priests to begin personifying death as the skeletal, scythe-wielding Grim Reaper we
know today. The figure of the Grim Reaper and his female counterpart, La Parca, were
brought to the indigenous peoples of the Americas by the Spanish. Interpreting these
imported figures through the lens of their own cultural heritage, some indigenous
groups interpreted the personification of death as a saint in its own right, although this
certainly was not what the Spanish intended. The Church’s persecution of worshippers
of such skeleton saints forced the various cults underground where they would remain
for many years (Chesnut 30-31).
The first specific references to Santa Muerte appear in the colonial record in the 1790’s,
where secret ecstatic ritual gatherings centered on a figure of death are described
(Chesnut 31). However, continued harassment by the Church ensured that Santa Muerte
devotees remained secretive. In the 1940’s and 50’s, anthropological studies in various
parts of the country revealed cases of love sorcery involving a skeletal figure whose aid
was sought by women needing help in matters of the heart. This skeleton saint was
primarily invoked by women seeking to punish and return unfaithful husbands and
boyfriends (Chesnut 33-34).
It appears that Santa Muerte’s powers of vengeance were limited to matters of love until
the late 1980’s. She made a small-scale media debut in 1989, when the search for a
missing college student led police officers to the ranch of a Cuban-American drug
trafficker. Police discovered a large amount of human remains buried on the property,
and discovered that the drug trafficker and his gang were involved in a deviant fusion of
Mexican witchcraft and Afro-Caribbean religion. Among the many bones and ritual items
found on the property was a statue of Santa Muerte (Chesnut 97-98). However, the
skeleton saint did not achieve national notoriety until 1998 in connection with the
infamously brutal kidnapper Mochaorejas (“Ear Chopper”), who brought a figurine of
the saint with him when he was sent to prison (Chesnut 96). Since then, the media has
reported numerous cases where police officers have discovered altars and statues to
Santa Muerte at the houses of known narcos, to the point where Santa Muerte is now
considered the “patron saint” of the drug cartels. However, it is perhaps more accurate
to say that her following includes people who work in close proximity to death on both
sides of the law; Santa Muerte enjoys almost equal popularity among the police officers
and prison guards who deal with the cartels on a daily basis (Chesnut 36, 98-99).
Santa Muerte statues and candles come in different colours. Whereas the red Santa
Muerte, also called La Roja, is connected to love magic and still the biggest seller, it is
mostly the black Santa Muerte, La Negra, who represents protection and vengeance who
has been connected to the cartels. The rise of La Negra can be connected to the
escalation of drug-related violence in Mexico during the 1980’s and 1990’s. Until the
1990’s, Colombian drug traffickers were largely in control of the drug trade to the
world’s largest market for narcotics: the United States. However, a series of counteroffensives against the Colombian cartels by the U.S. government as well as the increasing
sophistication of their Mexican colleagues paved the way for the Mexican cartels’
claiming the upper hand (Chesnut 99-100). The struggle to conquer the market and
outcompete the Colombians resulted in ever-increasing levels of violence in the late
1980’s and early 1990’s. On claiming power in 2006, former president Felipe Calderón
initiated a full-scale drug war, which resulted in a veritable explosion of inter- and intracartel violence claiming tens of thousands of lives (Chesnut 101-102). The desperate
situation and increasing probability of a violent death for agents of the law and cartel
foot soldiers alike makes it a logical choice to turn to death itself for protection.
In 2002, worship of Santa Muerte went public when unsuspecting quesadilla vendor
Enriqueta Romero decided to display a statue of the saint where her customers could
see it. Within days, Enriqueta’s neighbours and customers had filled her small kitchen
with flowers and candles to honor the saint. Enriqueta has since established a formal
shrine that has had hundreds of thousands of visitors to date, and still runs a monthly
service in honour of Santa Muerte.
Beliefs and practices
The cult of Santa Muerte is pragmatic and contractual. Devotees communicate with her
mostly through prayer, and petition her to grant them all kinds of small and large
favours. If the miracle is granted, the petitioner is obligated to give something in return,
such as an offering, a candle, recite of prayers or make pilgrimages to a Santa Muerte
shrine. While there is no formal doctrine, and devotees are free to design their own
prayers and rituals, most are modeled on a Catholic structure. Many prayers to the saint
include a supporting cast of the Holy Trinity, the Virgin Mary and other saints.
As is the case with many folk saints, many of her devotees regard her as a supernatural
family member. She is approached with intimacy, and is thought to enjoy the same food,
drink and smokes as her adherents: popular altar offerings include tequila, beer,
cigarettes and candy. Glasses of water are nearly always present on Santa Muerte’s
altars, which are also often decorated with flowers. However, the most important altar
feature is perhaps candles, which are used for decoration as well as to symbolize vows
or petitions to the saint.
Contrary to her media image as the dark lady of the cartels and in addition to her
position as a love sorceress, the Santa Muerte of today is also a celestial multi-tasker
who can perform miracles in all areas of life. She has a reputation as the most powerful
saint in the divine hierarchy, second only to God, and is famous for granting both moral
and amoral requests. This is illustrated by one of my visits to a botanica in Austin, where
a saleswoman approached me as I was surveying the multi-coloured Santa Muerte
statues and candles lining the walls. “She’s very popular with the cartels”, she said,
casually. After looking at me more carefully and catching sight of my male companion
standing beside me (and perhaps deciding that we did not look like cartel wannabes)
she indicated a somewhat more unusual statue depicting a pregnant Santa Muerte with
a mini skeleton in her womb. “This one is for when you’re trying to have a baby”, she
stated, winking at me.
Controversies
Most devotees are practicing Catholics and do not distinguish between this and their
veneration of Santa Muerte. However, the Catholic Church has denounced the skeleton
saint as a satanic idol (Chesnut 43-45). Santa Muerte is also met with animosity by
secular institutions. The strong association between her and the drug cartels, whose role
in her cult has been blown out of proportion by sensationalistic news coverage linking
Santa Muerte worship to murder and human sacrifice have boosted her sinister
reputation. The Mexican government has taken steps to eradicate the cult as part of its
war against the cartels, demolishing many shrines along the border (Chesnut 45).
While Santa Muerte has yet to reach the same levels of notoriety in the U.S. as on the
sourthern side of the border, suspicion has nonetheless spread. An article published on
the F.B.I.’s Law Enforcement Bulletin expresses concern regarding the sinister fringes of
the cult. The author of the article claims that the figure of Santa Muerte can provide a
spiritual rationalization for brutality and criminal activities, and adds that more than
half of the prayers addressed to Santa Muerte are requests to harm other people. While
such statements go against the conclusions of academic research, it nonetheless
illustrates how fear of this controversial saint has spread across the border.
When in San Antonio, Texas, I visited several botanicas in the southern, Mexicandominated parts of the city. In one of these botanicas, my companion and I agreed to
readings with a Santeria priestess. I was wearing a Santa Muerte ring, purchased at a
different botanica, which the Santera immediately noticed. She was clearly bothered,
and immediately began scolding me for my imagined involvement with Santa Muerte.
During our reading, every card she brought forth seemed to indicate death, destruction
and misfortune for me. Moreover, the Santera said firmly that the cards stated I was in
legal trouble, and, in a conspiratorial whisper, asked me whether I had been trafficking
drugs. During my companion’s reading, she warned him strongly against continuing to
associate with me, stating that I would likely bring death and destruction to everyone
around me because of my unfortunate pact with the forces of darkness.
Popular religion versus official religion
The cult of Santa Muerte is an example of what Meredith McGuire defines as popular or
“lived” religion. Popular religion has historically been viewed as irrational, superstitious
or even dangerous by proponents of official, institutionalized religion. McGuire
emphasises that, despite official religious institutions’ claims to the contrary, there is no
essential difference between official and popular religion. Instead, this dichotomy is the
result of history being written by the victors, and the successfully established religious
instituting dismissing the beliefs and practices they disapprove of as popular religion
(McGuire 42-44).
The Santa Muerte cult and the hostility of the Catholic Church towards its adherents are
a clear example of this structure. It may be easy to dismiss Santa Muerte veneration as
an example of poor people’s superstition (particularly as most devotees do not share an
academic interest in the origins of their deathly protectress, but focus primarily on her
powers as a miracle-worker), and this is what the author of the above-mentioned F.B.I.
article does. Noting that not all of Santa Muerte’s devotees are criminals, he claims that
the rest are mainly “uneducated and superstitious individuals”. Accepting such claims at
face value reproduces the existing religious hegemony where the historical victors, such
as the Catholic Church, are allowed to define what constitutes legitimate spirituality
unchallenged.
Women constitute a major part of Santa Muerte’s devotees, not least as the red candles
and statues of love magic to return wayward husbands and boyfriends continue to be
the biggest sellers. For this reason it is also important to remember that the dichotomy
between official and popular religion has gender-political implications. Scholars have
noted that women are generally more involved in popular religion than men. Partly, this
is a consequence of the fact that religious institutions are mostly run by white, wealthy
males whose ideas have become official doctrine, resulting in the spiritual practice of
women and poor people being marginalized (McGuire 167-168). An uncritical
appropriation of this dichotomy in relation to the cult of Santa Muerte can contribute to
legitimizing a patriarchal structure, as women’s religiosity is denigrated.
Previous research has observed that popular religion can become a forum where
underprivileged groups can subvert established hegemonies and act as creative spiritual
subjects despite their position (McGuire 161, 167-168). This is definitely applicable to
Santa Muerte, as the lack of formal credos allows poor people, women and LGBT persons
who do not wield any particular power in the Catholic Church to create their own
understandings of the supernatural. Moreover, women can become religious leaders in
such a cult, as is seen in the case of Enriqueta Romero.
The flexibility of popular religion also seems to be part of the appeal for some of the
above-mentioned groups. There is evidence that LGBT people are drawn to Santa
Muerte who, unlike the Catholic Church, is thought to accept them. David Romo, one of
the most prominent figures of the Santa Muerte cult, has been officiating same-sex
weddings in his church since 2010. There are also indications that the skeleton saint is
popular among Mexican transgender sex workers. The fact that the Santa Muerte cult
lacks formal leadership and that rituals, prayers and images are often shared between
people means that the folk saint can function as a glue to keep the community of
transgender sex workers together. These sex workers identify with Santa Muerte who,
like them, is marginalized and regarded with suspicion by the Catholic Church. The risk
and very real possibility of death in the transgender sex workers’ lives, partly due to
homophobia and transphobia, strengthens their faith in the saint who has the power to
bestow or withhold death (Howe et al).
While popular religion can function as an arena for combating marginalization in one’s
spiritual practice, it has also been observed by McGuire that popular religion can
sometimes be more prone to legitimization of violence and oppression, lacking the
controlling and tempering forces of official institutions with recognized authorities
(McGuire 89). This also seems to apply to the cult of Santa Muerte. While the vast
majority of her devotees are not criminals or cartel members, there are indications that
veneration of the skeleton saint provides a spiritual framework for dealing with and
justifying acts of extreme brutality within Mexico’s criminal underworld. In this case, her
highly flexible image can instead be co-opted to legitimate the exertion of violence and
oppression. However, it is also important to note that cartel members to a great extent
turn to Santa Muerte for protection against harm, knowing that their dangerous lifestyle
is likely to lead them to an early death.
Conclusion
The purpose of this paper has been to introduce the rapidly growing cult of the
controversial folk saint Santa Muerte. Since she made her media debut in the late 1980’s,
Santa Muerte has been increasingly associated with the Mexican drug war in the public
imagination. This connection is not unjustified, as countless drug busts have uncovered
evidence of Santa Muerte worship among known drug traffickers. However, the role of
the skeleton saint is more complex than her sinister media image implies. Firstly, she is
almost equally popular among agents of the law who, like the cartels’ foot soldiers, know
that death is imminent and seek protection. Secondly, the most popular version of Santa
Muerte continues to be the red lady of love sorcery, mostly invoked by women with
adulterous partners. Since her cult went public, this reputedly omnipotent saint has also
been attracting people seeking help in all areas of life, from health and prosperity to
legal troubles and academic pursuits. Finally, there is also evidence that veneration of
Santa Muerte, because of her problematic relationship with the Catholic Church, can
function as a forum for the redefinition of power relations, where poor people, women
and LGBT people are able to combat spiritual marginalization and act as religious
authorities in their own right. While the media continues to regard Santa Muerte with
not wholly unfounded suspicion, it is thus nonetheless important to remember that the
uncritical acceptance of biased information can in actuality serve the interests of the
already privileged. For this reason, I have attempted to demonstrate some of the many
faces of this skeletal folk saint, in order to indicate how her cult can function both as a
subversive force and a justification for brutality.
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