His second explanation is that Westerners are confused about any kind, or level, of sacrifice. Western capitalist society places value on an economics that reward selfishness instead of giving. This is so engrained in Western society that the idea of any sacrifice is extremely threatening to the livelihood, security, and sense of how things get done. In addition, the West condemns sacrifice because of its guilt about the entire concept of sacrifice. He argues that Western capitalism promotes sacrifice, for example ecology of the planet, for the sake of profit. The direct and messy contact in Santeria rituals to invoke the divine to test the deeper inner sacrifice a believer is willing to make differs greatly from the shallow and impersonal sacrifices Westerners make in the name of economics.

All santeros are botanical experts. Magical herbs, called ewe, consist of trees, plants, roots, barks, and flowers. The santero must be familiar with the specific ebbo and ewe for each orisha. Herbs in the asiento and major rituals must be fresh. When picking out these herbs, the santero is respectful of it the plant from which it came. A tree called Ceiba is a sacred tree in Santeria thought to have great spiritual force. They are so respectful of this tree that they never cross over its shadow without asking for permission first. Ebbo, including animal sacrifices, are given to this tree and magical words are spoken and sang to the tree. Powerful spells can be made from this tree and its roots and leaves are thought to be of great medicinal value. The tree does not distinguish between good and evil. When it is angered, it will not give the santero protection. Santeros believe that this tree is a saint. It is a female tree and it is maternal. There are six magical uses for the Ceiba: the trunk is used to cast evil spells, the bark is used for teas and for medicinal cures, the leaves also have medicinal uses and are used to cast love spells, the roots are on which the offerings and blood from sacrificial animals are placed, the earth around the tree is used for black magic, and the shade of the tree draws the spirits and gives supernatural powers to the spells.

When the Cuban Revolution occurred in 1959, many Cuban exiles entered the United States and other Latin American countries. The majority of non-white Cubans moved to the Northeastern U.S., especially to the New York - New Jersey area. This was the second transplantation and acculturation for Yoruba religion. Many Santeria followers have had to make changes in their religious practices as they acquire North American culture. There were some issues, concerns, and conflicts Santeria had to cope with and challenge. Santeria had to adapt in response to the new environment. (Brandon: 104-105)

Some topics in this essay:
EWE People, Yemaya Chango, Flores-Pena Evanchuk, Equally Santeria, European Judeo-Christians, BEMBE Bembe, Amira Cornelius, ANCESTORS Worshipping, ANIMAL SACRIFICE, Yemaya Oshun, gonzalez-wippler 1989, murphy 1993, animal sacrifices, amira cornelius, patron orisha, gonzalez-wippler 1973, madrina padrino, table ifa, flow ashe, santeria priests, orishas gonzalez-wippler 1989, animal sacrifice nunez, secrecy inherent religion, santeria devotees santeros, yoruba religion santeria,