The warning signs every aleyo should recognize before choosing a godparent in Santería/Lukumí, and why religious authority must be supported by knowledge, character, and accountability.
By Keith Lawrence Miller, M.A.
One of the greatest challenges facing people entering Santería/Lukumí is knowing whom to trust.
An aleyo approaches the religion with questions, curiosity, uncertainty, and often a genuine desire to develop a relationship with Orisha. The individual may know very little about ceremonies, divination, religious protocol, or the responsibilities associated with initiation.
That lack of knowledge creates vulnerability.
A knowledgeable and ethical godparent can guide someone through years of spiritual development, teaching the importance of tradition, personal responsibility, religious discipline, and respect for Orisha.
Unfortunately, some individuals recognize that a newcomer’s uncertainty can also become a source of income, influence, and control.
Fear creates dependency. Dependency creates opportunities for exploitation. And when religious authority goes unquestioned, exploitation can continue for years.
This is why newcomers must learn to recognize the warning signs before entrusting another person with their spiritual development.
1. When Religion Becomes Someone's Full-Time Business
The first concern I would examine is whether a potential godparent operates religious ceremonies as their primary commercial enterprise.
There are legitimate expenses associated with ceremonies. Animals, herbs, ceremonial materials, transportation, preparation, and the participation of experienced religious practitioners all require resources. Religious labor has value.
However, when someone's entire livelihood depends on continually selling religious services, an important question arises.
How do you know whether the next ceremony is spiritually necessary or financially advantageous to the person recommending it?
That financial incentive does not automatically make someone dishonest. Nevertheless, it creates a potential conflict of interest that deserves attention.
A newcomer may receive a reading and be told that a ceremony is necessary. After completing it, another concern is identified. Another ceremony follows. Then another.
Over time, the individual may spend thousands of dollars without developing any greater understanding of their religion or the reasons behind these recommendations.
When every spiritual question generates another financial obligation, people should examine the pattern.
The purpose of religious development should be greater understanding, spiritual maturity, and a stronger relationship with Orisha.
A godchild should experience spiritual development, not become a permanent revenue stream.
2. Fear Is One of the Most Effective Instruments of Manipulation
Consider what happens when an individual is told that something terrible will occur unless a particular ceremony is performed.
Perhaps the person is warned about illness, financial ruin, relationship problems, spiritual attacks, or danger to family members.
The message becomes increasingly urgent.
The solution is presented as a ceremony that requires payment.
And the individual is told that delaying the ceremony could have serious consequences.
At that point, the person may no longer be making a religious decision through understanding and informed judgment.
The decision may be driven primarily by fear.
There are legitimate religious teachings concerning osogbo, spiritual imbalance, prescribed ebó, and the consequences of disregarding certain instructions. These concepts are part of the religion and should be treated seriously.
But their existence does not give anyone permission to manufacture spiritual emergencies or exploit another person's anxiety.
When someone repeatedly uses fear to pressure you into paying for religious services, that is a red flag.
A responsible godparent should be able to explain what was identified, why a recommendation was made, and what religious reasoning supports the proposed action, within the appropriate boundaries of the tradition.
Threats and intimidation should never replace religious education.
3. When Godparents Attempt to Control What You Learn
Another serious warning sign appears when a godparent attempts to control every source of religious information available to a godchild.
Some individuals discourage newcomers from reading books about Santería/Lukumí.
Others insist that their godchildren should never learn from another olorisha, ask questions outside their religious house, or compare different interpretations of religious practice.
The justification is often that outside information will confuse the person or interfere with the traditions of the house.
There is a legitimate concern here. Books cannot replace initiation, practical ceremonial instruction, or the direct transmission of certain forms of religious knowledge. Different houses also maintain particular practices and responsibilities.
However, these realities do not justify treating religious education as the exclusive property of one individual.
A godparent who tells you that you cannot learn from anyone else deserves careful scrutiny.
Why would a knowledgeable religious practitioner be threatened by an educated godchild?
Why should someone who genuinely understands their religion fear questions?
Why would access to religious history, scholarly research, cultural information, and the perspectives of other experienced practitioners automatically be considered dangerous?
The answer may sometimes involve legitimate religious boundaries. But when every outside source is rejected and every question is interpreted as disobedience, the relationship can become one of intellectual control.
An educated godchild is better prepared to understand ceremonies, recognize questionable conduct, and make informed decisions.
The godparent who fears an educated godchild should be questioned. The godparent who cultivates an educated godchild deserves respect.
4. An Olorisha's Own Life Deserves Examination
There is another issue I believe people should consider when evaluating religious authority.
Look at the life of the person offering you spiritual guidance.
How does this individual behave?
What relationships have they developed?
How do they treat their family, godchildren, and community?
Do they demonstrate honesty, responsibility, emotional maturity, and consistency?
Are their actions consistent with the religious principles they claim to represent?
Within Santería/Lukumí, we recognize the importance of iré and osogbo. We consult Orisha for insight into the spiritual conditions affecting our lives and the actions necessary to address them.
If an olorisha is consistently living in osogbo while presenting themselves as capable of resolving everyone else's spiritual problems, I believe that deserves examination.
Experiencing adversity does not automatically mean someone has acted improperly. Good people experience suffering, illness, financial difficulties, and other challenges. Osogbo is not proof of bad character.
Nevertheless, a person making extraordinary claims about their spiritual knowledge and abilities should not be exempt from questions about how they apply those teachings in their own life.
Religious titles do not eliminate the need for accountability.
Orisha sees everything.
We should not be so impressed by ceremonial titles, religious clothing, elaborate shrines, or claims of spiritual authority that we stop examining the character of the person standing before us.
5. What My Own Relationship With Orisha Has Produced
I believe people should be willing to speak openly about their own spiritual experiences, including the blessings they attribute to their relationship with Orisha.
I can speak about mine.
I own two homes, one of which is a mansion.
I have the freedom to organize my life, spend my time as I choose, and pursue the goals that matter to me.
My children are healthy.
My wife remains an extraordinary partner after approximately twenty years of marriage.
And the Itá associated with both my crowning and knife ceremonies contains no osogbo.
These are blessings for which I am profoundly grateful.
I understand that material possessions alone do not establish spiritual achievement, and prosperity is not a universal measure of religious authority. People experience blessings in different forms.
But I also believe it is reasonable to examine the relationship between what someone teaches, how they live, and what their actions produce.
I do not need to frighten people into believing that my relationship with Orisha has value.
I do not need to manufacture spiritual emergencies to demonstrate religious knowledge.
I do not need to prevent someone from reading books, speaking with other practitioners, or asking difficult questions.
And I certainly do not need to convince anyone that I possess exclusive access to Orisha.
My life is my testimony.
To those who use greed, threats, manipulation, scams, and lies while claiming to represent Orisha, I issue a challenge: Examine your own life. Examine your conduct. Examine what you have actually produced.
Are you living according to the principles you demand that others follow?
Are your godchildren developing knowledge, confidence, and spiritual maturity?
Or have you created a system in which their greatest responsibility is to remain dependent upon you?
These are questions worth answering.
6. The Difference Between Spiritual Mentorship and Dependency
The relationship between a godparent and godchild is among the most important relationships within Santería/Lukumí.
A godparent assumes serious responsibilities.
The individual must teach, guide, provide ceremonial instruction, preserve religious practices, and support the spiritual development of the godchild.
The godchild also assumes responsibilities involving respect, participation, learning, and adherence to the appropriate religious protocols.
A healthy relationship should allow spiritual understanding to develop over time.
The godchild should become increasingly knowledgeable about the religion, its ethical principles, and the responsibilities that accompany initiation.
However, an unhealthy relationship can create the opposite outcome.
The individual may become increasingly afraid of making independent decisions, asking questions, or disagreeing with the godparent.
Religious instruction becomes a series of commands.
Ceremonies become recurring financial obligations.
The godchild may eventually believe that leaving the relationship or seeking information elsewhere will result in spiritual punishment.
That is a dangerous form of dependency.
Spiritual authority should be exercised with responsibility. It should never require the surrender of independent thought.
7. Orisha Does Not Belong to Any Godparent
One of the most important principles I want newcomers to understand is that no human being owns Orisha.
Godparents serve essential religious functions. They preserve ceremonial knowledge, guide initiates, and maintain established religious traditions.
Yet Orisha exists beyond the walls of an ilé.
Oshún is associated with the river.
Yemayá is associated with the ocean.
Eleguá is associated with the crossroads.
Our religious understanding recognizes divine forces throughout nature.
An individual can pray, express gratitude, honor Orisha, and begin learning about the religion without surrendering spiritual autonomy to another human being.
Of course, receiving Orisha through established ceremonies carries religious significance that cannot simply be reproduced through personal altars or independent practices.
But that does not mean a person must obtain human permission to acknowledge the divine.
Godparents are not gatekeepers to Orisha.
Their responsibility is to guide people in their religious development, respecting the knowledge, traditions, and ceremonial responsibilities entrusted to them.
No individual should transform that responsibility into a claim of ownership over another person's spiritual life.
8. Newcomers Must Learn to Recognize the Warning Signs
Before choosing a godparent, examine the relationship being offered.
Ask yourself:
- Does this person teach me, or primarily tell me what I must purchase?
- Do religious recommendations come with clear explanations, or repeated threats?
- Am I encouraged to develop knowledge, or discouraged from asking questions?
- Can I learn from books and other credible sources without being accused of disrespect?
- Does this person's conduct reflect the principles they teach?
- Am I becoming more knowledgeable and confident, or increasingly afraid and dependent?
- Does this person demonstrate genuine care for my spiritual development, even when no money is involved?
These questions are not acts of religious rebellion.
They are reasonable considerations when deciding whom to trust with a relationship that may last a lifetime.
Newcomers should understand that possessing religious titles, completing ceremonies, or maintaining an impressive shrine does not automatically establish someone's integrity.
Character matters.
Knowledge matters.
Conduct matters.
And the way someone treats people who possess less religious knowledge matters enormously.
9. Religious Communities Have a Responsibility to Protect Newcomers
Aleyos enter Santería/Lukumí because they are searching for understanding, connection, spiritual development, or answers to important questions.
They should not have to navigate a culture in which asking reasonable questions creates hostility.
Religious communities should encourage education, responsible discussion, and the examination of practices that may expose newcomers to exploitation.
Experienced practitioners have an opportunity to demonstrate the value of their knowledge through patient teaching and ethical conduct.
That requires acknowledging that no individual has a monopoly on religious wisdom.
Different houses may preserve different teachings. Experienced olorishas may disagree about protocol. Scholars may contribute valuable historical and cultural knowledge.
Those conversations can strengthen religious understanding.
Attempts to eliminate all disagreement create an environment in which questionable practices are more difficult to challenge.
And when people cannot challenge questionable practices, exploitation becomes easier.
A community that truly values its religious traditions should also value the protection, education, and spiritual independence of the people entering those traditions.
Final Thoughts: Orisha Sees Everything
The central issue is trust.
When someone chooses a godparent, they are placing considerable confidence in that person's knowledge, judgment, religious integrity, and character.
That trust carries responsibilities.
The godparent should teach rather than intimidate.
Guide rather than manipulate.
Explain rather than threaten.
Encourage learning rather than control information.
And place the spiritual development of the godchild above the opportunity to generate another payment.
I believe Orisha sees everything.
I believe our actions have meaning, and the principles we practice should be reflected in the way we live and treat others.
Those who exploit religion through greed, fear, manipulation, threats, and deception should be held accountable for their conduct.
Newcomers deserve knowledgeable and ethical spiritual mentors.
They deserve the freedom to learn.
They deserve the freedom to ask questions.
And they deserve to develop a relationship with Orisha without being made to feel that their spiritual well-being is permanently controlled by another human being.
If a godparent must keep you afraid to keep you dependent, what does that reveal about the relationship?
Orisha deserves reverence.
Religious knowledge deserves respect.
And spiritual authority must always carry accountability.
No human being owns Orisha. No godparent owns your spiritual future.
Sources and references
- Original author-supplied commentary and personal testimony by Keith Lawrence Miller, M.A.; no independent empirical verification of personal testimony is claimed.
Related reading
Suggest a correction through the existing contact page, identifying this article and the statement concerned.