San La Muerte | |
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Figures of Gauchito Gil (left) San La Muerte (right) two popular Saints on display in Argentina.
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Saint Skeleton, Saint Death, Lord of the Good Death, Lord of Death | |
Venerated in | Folk Catholicism, Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil |
Feast | August 13, August 15 |
Attributes | Male skeleton clad in a hooded robe, scythe |
Patronage | Restore love, good fortune, gambling, protection against witchcraft, protection against imprisonment, inmates, prisoners, luck, good health, vengeance |
San La Muerte (Saint Death) is a skeletal folk saint that is venerated in Paraguay, the Northeast of Argentina (mainly in the province of Corrientes but also in Misiones, Chaco and Formosa) and southern Brazil (specifically in the states of Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul). As the result of internal migration in Argentina since the 1960s the veneration of San La Muerte has been extended to Greater Buenos Aires and the national prison system as well.
Saint Death is depicted as a male skeleton figure usually holding a scythe. Although the Catholic Church has attacked the devotion of Saint Death as a tradition that mixes paganism with Christianity and is contrary to the Christian belief of Christ defeating death, many devotees consider the veneration of San La Muerte as being part of their Catholic faith.
Although the rituals connected to and powers ascribed to San La Muerte are very similar, San La Muerte should not be confused with the similar folk saint Santa Muerte that is venerated in Mexico and parts of the US, and is typically depicted as a female skeleton figure. In addition, Santa Muerte is often depicted as goddess while San La Muerte is almost never considered a deity.
San La Muerte is one of many folk saints venerated in the Guaraní language region that covers parts of Paraguay, north-eastern Argentina and southern Brazil. Others include San Biquicho, San Alejo and Santa Catalina. Other names for San La Muerte include Señor De La Muerte (Lord of Death), Señor De La Buena Muerte (Lord of the Good Death) or - mainly in Paraguay - San Esqueleto (Saint Skeleton). It is believed that San La Muerte was first venerated among the Guaraní Indians following the expulsion of their Jesuit missionaries in 1767, as a mixture of their previous beliefs and the newly imported Catholic faith. Another Argentine folk saint, Gauchito Gil, was a known devotee of San La Muerte. Some of the Guarani tribes worshiped the bones of ancestors demanding protection against natural phenomena and adverse spiritual forces, which converged with the Catholic tradition of considering the bones of saints as holy relics. However, there is currently no authoritative account of the origins of the San La Muerte cult.