When the rainbow streaks the sky after the rain, Afro-Brazilian tradition recognizes the passage of Oxumaré, the sacred serpent that connects heaven to earth. On August 24, the Church celebrates a martyred apostle, and the terreiros greet this same orixá. It is the meeting of Saint Bartholomew and Oxumaré, one of the most curious pairs of Brazilian syncretism.
This guide explains who Saint Bartholomew is, who Oxumaré is, why the two figures crossed paths on the same day, and why syncretism, here, never meant that saint and orixá are the same thing.
Who is Saint Bartholomew, the apostle of August 24
Saint Bartholomew was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus, often identified with Nathanael, the one whom the Gospels describe as a man without falsehood. After the death and resurrection of Christ, tradition tells that he took the preaching to distant lands, from Armenia to India, until he died as a martyr.
The detail that marked Christian memory was the manner of the martyrdom. According to tradition, Bartholomew was flayed alive, having his skin torn from his body before he died. For this reason, sacred art usually portrays him holding his own skin and the knife of the ordeal, a powerful image that has crossed the centuries.
The Church celebrates Saint Bartholomew on August 24. It was this date, and this story of skin detaching from the body, that opened the door for the meeting with an orixá from the other side of the Atlantic.
Who is Oxumaré, the orixá of the rainbow
Oxumaré is the orixá of the rainbow snake, the lord of movement and transformations. He lives between heaven and earth, and it is through the rainbow that he makes the bridge between the two worlds. Where there is cycle, renewal, and continuity, there is his mark. The name comes from Yoruba and means, precisely, rainbow.
The strongest root of the orixá is jeje, where it corresponds to the vodun Dã, although it is also worshipped in candomblé ketu. Son of Nanã in many houses, he rules wealth, fortune, and the multiplicity of life. The serpent that swallows its own tail, an ancient symbol of the eternal return, is one of his images.
One point about the foundation draws attention. Tradition describes it with a dual nature, male and female: the rainbow is the masculine face, and the serpent, called Frecuém in some houses, the feminine. In an itã gathered by Reginaldo Prandi, he spends six months as a monster and six as a beautiful woman, although he is regarded as a father of the head (pai de cabeça), not a mother. It is an ancient foundation, treated with respect in terreiros, not as a curiosity.
Origin: jeje (vodum Dã), also present in ketu | Domain: rainbow, cycles, wealth, renewal | Day: Tuesday | Colors: yellow and green, or yellow and black, and all the colors of the rainbow | Greeting: “Arroboboi, Oxumaré!”
Why Saint Bartholomew is linked to Oxumaré
The link between the two was born from an image, not from a doctrine. Saint Bartholomew loses his skin in martyrdom. The serpent, in turn, sheds its skin to renew itself. The same scene, the skin that detaches from the body, appears in the history of the saint and in the symbol of the orixá. It was this correspondence that popular devotion perceived and preserved.
The snake's shedding of skin is one of the strongest symbols of renewal that exists. The creature leaves behind what was old and moves forward whole. The orixá is exactly this movement: the cycle that closes and restarts, the death of one phase and the birth of another. The skin torn from Bartholomew, read through this lens, ceased to be only suffering and became a passage, a rebirth.
There is no official explanation for this syncretism, and no house treats it as dogma. What there is is a symbolic bridge, built over centuries by a people who needed discretion to keep their faith alive. And this is where the most important point of this article comes in.
Syncretism is not equality
It must be said in plain letters: Saint Bartholomew and Oxumaré are not the same thing. One is an apostle of Christianity, with his history and his faith. The other is an orixá of Candomblé, with his own foundation, his nation, and his liturgy. Linking the two as synonyms erases the identity of each one.
Syncretism was a strategy of resistance. During slavery and religious repression, worshipping orixás was forbidden and persecuted. Hiding the orixá behind the statue of the Catholic saint was a way to survive: on the outside, the permitted figure; on the inside, the African faith preserved. The disguise saved the tradition, and that is why it exists to this day.
The saint and the orixá meet on the same date, but each one keeps its own path. Respecting syncretism is understanding the history that created it, not confusing two faiths into one. That of the saint is of the saint. That of the orixá is of the orixá.
Therefore, when someone says "Oxumaré is Saint Bartholomew," the most honest thing is to complete: in the syncretism formed during colonization, the orixá was associated with the saint to resist, but the two figures remain distinct in their origins. This care is a form of respect for both traditions at the same time, without erasing either one.
August 24: how Oxumaré is celebrated
The day August 24 is the great festival of the orixá in the syncretic calendar, inherited from the date of Saint Bartholomew. It is when many terreiros concentrate their tributes, even though Tuesday is the day of the week throughout the year. As the Wikipedia entry records, August 24 is the date of the orixá in Bahia, and thus the same date brings the saint and the orixá together in a single festival.
The tributes follow the fundamento of each house. The colors of the orixá usually appear, yellow and green, or yellow and black in the Jeje tradition, in addition to all the shades of the rainbow. The greeting echoes in the gira and in the barracão: "Arroboboi, Oxumaré!". Offerings and obligations always go according to the orientation of the leader, never on one's own.
It is worth remembering that the day is for celebration, not for a magic promise. To honor it is to give thanks for the cycles, to ask for renewal, and to set the faith, in the rhythm of a tradition that crossed the ocean and resisted. Those who wish to go deeper can know the complete profile of Oxumaré and the logic of saints and orixás in syncretism.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Saint Bartholomew and why is he linked to Oxumaré?
Saint Bartholomew was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus, martyred by flaying, celebrated on August 24. The link with the orixá was born from a common image: the skin that sheds. The saint loses his skin in the martyrdom, and the serpent sheds its skin to renew itself. From there comes the syncretic association.
Who is the orixá Oxumaré?
Oxumaré is the orixá of the rainbow snake, lord of cycles, movement, and renewal. Of Jeje roots, where he corresponds to the vodun Dã, he links heaven to earth through the rainbow and rules wealth and the continuity of life. Tradition describes him with a dual nature, male and female, treated as an ancient fundamento.
What is the day of Oxumaré and of Saint Bartholomew?
The festival takes place on August 24, the date of Saint Bartholomew, when the terreiros concentrate the tributes to the orixá. Throughout the year, however, the spirit's day of the week is Tuesday. The two dates coexist: one is the festive day of syncretism, the other is the weekly day of devotion.
What are the colors and the greeting of Oxumaré?
The most associated colors are yellow and green, and also yellow and black in the Jeje tradition, in addition to all the colors of the rainbow. The traditional greeting is "Arroboboi, Oxumaré!", chanted in the giras and festivals. Each house sets the orixá according to its own foundation and nation.
Why was Oxumaré syncretized with Saint Bartholomew?
Because syncretism was a strategy of resistance during colonization. Worshiping orixás was forbidden, so the people hid the devotion behind the statue of Saint Bartholomew, taking advantage of the symbol of the skin that peels off. This does not make them equal: they are distinct figures, united by a history of survival of the faith.
Where to find items of devotion to Oxumaré
At Joia Mística Laroyê, you find what you need to honor Oxumaré and Saint Bartholomew with respect to the foundation of your house:
- Candles in the colors of the orixá: yellow, green, and the colors of the rainbow
- Statues of Oxumaré and of Saint Bartholomew: for your altar and your ponto
- Bead necklaces (guias) and bead strands: in the colors of the orixá, for those who have a connection with the line
- Herbs and incense: for baths and renewal cleansings
- Pottery and offering items: to set the devotion with the guidance of the house
Visit our physical store in Extrema, Minas Gerais or receive it at home with delivery to all of Brazil. To know how to honor the orixá on August 24 with responsibility, and always with the leader of your house, talk to us via WhatsApp.
References
- Wikipedia: entry about Oxumaré
