Ancestor Cults [ancestor, from Latin antecessor, from ante, before + cedere, to go]
Various traditions around the world venerate and pray to deceased ancestors.
These so-called ‘cults’ believe that familial spirits come to aid in daily life by bestowing spiritual power, protection, wisdom and even practical guidance through individuals acting as mediums.
With roots in Africa, China, Korea, Taiwan, and Japan, ancestor veneration especially appears in folk religions. Ritual is often present.
In Africa ancestors are said to protect living relatives from witches and voodoo curses.
In Asia ancestor veneration is found in varying degrees of importance in Confucianism, Taoism, Shinto and Buddhism.
In China, the graves of ancestors are meticulously kept, despite former Marxist and Communist attempts to squelch out other spiritual practices.
In North American Native religions, the ongoing presence of the dead is taken to be equally as important as the ongoing presence of the living.
Western culture tends to view this as odd and some religious groups deplore it as Satanic, probably because of their focus on the trappings and trends of everyday life.
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