Once again, we are looking at the work of a powerful voodoo priest in an attempt to further our education of the people and once again distance the true religion of voodoo from its portrayal in movies and media. Therefore, we turn our attention to Wesner Morency, the founder-in-chief of the Church of Haiti.
Wesner Morency was a modern practitioner of voodoo, a contemporary Voodoo Houngan (which literally translates to male priest. A female priestess is known as a mambo). For much of his life he was a man of little importance, leading an ordinary life with his family, but he had a burning passion that accompanied his everyday role as father, mother, and provider.
Somehow, Wesner Morency disguises himself in this article, although it is not his fault. Traditionally, we have used these pages to speak of powerful priests, a fact to which I alluded in the opening paragraph, but he was not a man of great ability in this regard. He was not someone who mastered the rites and rituals, but he did something very important and, in fact, he may be the most important person in the history of voodoo.
So why is this? You may well ask. If he doesn’t have any significant power, why would he show up here? In a nutshell, Wesner Morency dedicated his life to exactly what we are trying to do in this article: get voodoo recognized as a religion rather than a dark art.
He worked very closely with another person that we have already talked about in these articles before. You may remember Max Beauvoir; the biochemist who combined his passions for science and spiritualism. They were pioneers in persuading the Haitian government that Voodoo should be guaranteed as a religion, ensuring the rights of Voodoo practitioners throughout the country. In fact, he was raised for a career in the Catholic Church, and was literally days away from being ordained a priest when he received the spiritual call to not only join, but also form the Voodoo Church. Without him, we would never have found ourselves in a position where voodoo was recognized by any major government, and while there is still a battle to be fought (one we’re proud to be a part of) to gain more general recognition, at least started. the project!
When he died in 2007 after a battle with coronary disease, the voodoo world lost a dearest friend and the most passionate activist it had ever seen. His programs on radio and television were a great success in Haiti and are still regularly broadcast to large audiences. His legacy and contributions not only to the religion in the country, but also to the society and there is no doubt that this will continue for many generations. Hopefully, this article can raise his profile outside of his native Haiti, because once he reads his story, there is no doubt that he is worthy of much more recognition than he has received.
