haitian_voodoo_documentary_9
Following its sacrifice, pilgrims prepare to toss a bull's head into the sacred St. Jacques' hole, a mud pit on the edge of Plaine du Nord, Haiti, the site of an annual 2-day voodou festival held there on July 24, 2008. Animal sacrifice to appease the lwas, or spirits, are common in Haitian voodou. At Plaine du Nord pilgrims worship the lwa Ogou, who presides over matters of war, politics, iron and fire, and also Saint James, the Catholic warrior saint. Catholicism and voodou are forever intertwined in Haiti.