First Responce to "Entering the Serpent"

The evolution of religion is a very interesting thing. In this essay the authour does a great job of showing how the religaon has evolved from what the Aztecs started with to what the "white man" had now. I think that she did a great job of showing the differences and how people think differenty now because of those.


I think that swithing back and forth between laungues, though it confused me, was a great way to have a feel of the old world and new world in the essay. It showed the change in a was that I don't think words could have done alone.

She starts the essay with a memory from her childhood, a memory that shows the belief of her mother and that generation. At the time, just like kids today, she probably thought that this was a stupid belief and could not understand why her mother would belive such a thing. Yet, as she looks at the changes in the religain of her area over time she also saw some similaritys that helped her understand her mother's beliefs more.

When the beliefs begain in the Aztec religian they where balanced between men and women. They where peaceful, and wanted somthing better for all people. Over time this was perverted into a war driven religian that said they must speard their idea to everyone, even if it ment by force. This is a very interesting opservation. I think that this is true for alomost all religains. When they are in the early stages of evolution they usually have a period of war. We can see it in Chritianity and we can see it now in the Muslum faith. But, just as Christianity did, the realigian of Mexico countiuned to evolve and became peaceful again.

At this point I would think that the authour would be happy for the religion, but it seems that se still feels that it is missing its roots. She can see that some have made it though, but that the heart is gone.

I think that though out the essay she is trying to find a resoan tha ther mother believed what she did and at the end of the essay I think she did. She talks about how other people view people that are different and how these people that are outcast often find more of themselves then others. Then she finds a meaning behind the stories that are told, like the story that her mother told her, they are to protect, to improve, and to help people be better.

This was an interesting essay on Gloria's journy with religian and her struggle to find what worked for her.