What good is Vodou?

A young woman I tutor in Yewevodou expressed a desire to "work" with her vodous. Naturally, I took the moment to educate her about the nature of the various relationships she has with the vodous but in this I made an observation.

Young Americans, especially African American women, who come to Vodou often come in search of power, not tradition. And why shouldn't they? Don't we deserve a resource that is only for us? A power that we don't have sell your soul or pimp your body to acquire? And if Vodou doesn't give you that then what good is it?

The problem with this thinking is that Vodou does indeed offer material power. Not in spells and sorcery as these things are actually antithetical to Vodou. Vodou provides an ethical, historical, and social framework in which to establish political and economic power unreachable from without.

Vodou establishes the individual firmly within the context of a greater historical and spiritual narrative. Vodou provides connections for you to lean on while obligating investment into the group so that all are successful.

So if power is what you seek what could be more powerful than a socio-economic structure built for you to be successful, accessible only to you and others with a vested interest in your success because it guarantees their own?

Does vodou lend itself to spiritual talents to heal, harm or change? Certainly, but such talents are rare and require cultivation to reach maximum potential, the same as any other talent. A cultivation that Vodou singularly provides for all talents, spiritual and material.