San La Muerte: Angel or Demon?: Uncovering St. Death, South America's Skeletal Folk-Saint

By Edward Jarvis

Far from the neoclassical churches of central Buenos Aires, down the smoky backstreets of pungent shanty towns, supernatural belief is part of a daily life-and-death fight. Here, the saints' icons adorning the walls may not be the angelic clean-cut faces you would expect in a Catholic country. In their place, you may see a hooded, skeletal figure clutching a scythe.

Meet San La Muerte - Saint Death - patron anti-saint of the underworld or holy defender of the oppressed, according to whom you ask. They call him the most powerful of all the saints, but the favors he grants come at a cost: San La Muerte, it is believed, expects his spiritual favors to be returned in the physical realm, and his demands can push devotees beyond their worst nightmares.

Who is - or was - San La Muerte, and what is the real source of his power? Citing arcane documents, scholarly research, and first-hand accounts, this book takes the reader on a dark and engrossing journey from medieval Catholic Europe through to the notorious Jesuit missions, and to today's complex South American societies plagued by secretive criminal networks. At the heart of it all is San La Muerte: Angel or Demon? Readers of this book will be equipped to decide, if they dare.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0FVF3P28W
• ISBN13: 9798262763917
• Release Date: October 2025
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 156 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.0" x 8.0"