Miriam Chamani

Priestess Miriam Chamani (born
September 10, 1943; Mary Robin Adams,Costonie, Toni (2004) ''Priestess Miriam & The Voodoo Spiritual Temple''. InstantPublisher; pg. 1 Jackson, Mississippi)Pinn, Anthony B. (1998) ''Varieties of African American Religious Experience''.
Fortress Press is the Mambo (Mother/Priestess) and co-founder of the New Orleans Voodoo Spiritual Temple.The Pluralism Project: Voodoo Spiritual Temple
/ref>

Biography

Raised in Mississippi, Chamani says she has had visions and mystical experiences since childhood.Sens, Josh

in ''Golf Magazine'', December 01, 2005. Retrieved 28 December 2007 She became a Christian at age eleven, and would often go off by herself to pray and talk to the spirits. In 1975, after living in New York and then Chicago she became interested in the Spiritual church, and left the Baptist faith in which she'd been raised. During this time, she also worked as an operating room technician in a Chicago hospital.

In 1982 Chamani was ordained a bishop in the "Angel Angel All Nations Spiritual Church". In 1989 she met Oswan Chamani; they were married in 1990, and would go on to found the New Orleans Voodoo Spiritual Temple together. After his death on March 6, 1995, Miriam Chamani continued her husband's Belizan Vodou and herbalism traditions, in addition to her own spiritualist practices. She continues many of the inclusive trends of Black Christian Spiritualism, seeking to serve all peoples regardless of race or belief. She is presently married to environmentalist Allen Villeneuve.

Chamani has been featured in numerous documentaries and articles. She has been appeared in ''The New York Times'' in articles about Voodoo and events in New Orleans,Bragg, Rick
"Jazzy Final Sendoff for Chicken Man"
in ''The New York Times'', February 1, 1999. Retrieved 28 December 2007]Kinzer, Stephen
"Interest Surges in Voodoo, and Its Queen"
''The New York Times'', November 30, 2003. Retrieved December 28, 2007. as well as features in Spin (magazine), Spin Magazine, in movies, and on PBS and commercial TV in America, England and Japan. She was invited by actor Nicolas Cage to perform a blessing ceremony during his wedding to Lisa Marie Presley, after hiring her as a consultant for his directorial debut film ''Sonny''.Nicolas & Lisa Marie Return to Romance
in IMDb November 17, 2003

On Halloween 1999, a local radio station asked her to perform a ceremony outside the Superdome to help the New Orleans Saints win against the Cleveland Browns (which was interrupted by harassment from a Browns fan dressed as a dog).Peter, Josh (staff writer, ''The Times/Picayune''
"Hell to Pay"
archived on Nola.com. Retrieved 28 December 2007 She claims to have had better results helping the Spurs win the NBA championship in 2004.

New Orleans Voodoo Spiritual Temple

The Temple was established in 1990 by Priest Oswan Chamani and Miriam Chamani. It is located in the French Quarter next to Congo Square, and its rituals are directly connected to those performed on Congo Square by Marie Laveau and Doctor John.

Partial discography

* ''Voodoo'' - (2004) CD recorded at the Voodoo Spiritual Temple. Jose Suescun Music Distribution

References

Further reading

* Chester, Laura (2000) ''Holy Personal: Looking for Small Private Places of Worship'' Indiana University Press ,
* Conner, Randy P. & David Hatfield Sparks (2004) ''Queering Creole Spiritual Traditions: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Participation in African Inspired Traditions in the Americas''. Harrington Park Press ,
* Pile, Steve (2005) ''Real Cities: Modernity, Space, and the Phantasmagorias of City Life''. SAGE Publications Ltd ,
* Pinn, Anthony B. (1998) ''Varieties of African American Religious Experience''. Augsburg Fortress ,

External links

Voodoo Spiritual Temple and Cultural CenterNational Public Radio piece on Chamani
in ''The Southerner''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chamani, Miriam
1943 births
Living people
People from Jackson, Mississippi
American Voodoo practitioners
Religious leaders from Louisiana
Former Baptists
Louisiana Voodoo