Why would an Inca family be willing to sacrifice a child to the gods

The practice of human sacrifice in Pre-Columbian cultures, in particular Mesoamerican and South American cultures, is well documented both in the archaeological records and in written sources. The exact ideologies behind child sacrifice in different pre-Columbian cultures are unknown but it is often thought to have been performed to placate certain gods.

Explanation:

Mesoamerica

Olmec Culture

Altar 5 from La Venta. The inert were-jaguar baby held by the central figure is seen by some as an indication of child sacrifice. In contrast, its sides show bas-reliefs of humans holding quite lively were-jaguar babies.

Although there is no incontrovertible evidence of child sacrifice in the Olmec civilization, full skeletons of newborn or unborn infants, as well as dismembered femurs and skulls, have been found at the El Manatí sacrificial bog. These bones are associated with sacrificial offerings, particularly wooden busts. It is not known yet how the infants met their deaths.[1]

Some researchers have also associated infant sacrifice with Olmec ritual art showing limp "were-jaguar" babies, most famously in La Venta's Altar 5 (to the right) or Las Limas figure. Definitive answers await further findings.

Maya culture

In 2005 a mass grave of one- to two-year-old sacrificed children was found in the Maya region of Comalcalco. The sacrifices were apparently performed for consecration purposes when building temples at the Comalcalco acropolis.[2]

There are also skulls suggestive of child sacrifice dating to the Maya periods. Mayanists believe that, like the Aztecs, the Maya performed child sacrifice in specific circumstances. For example, infant sacrifice would occur to satisfy supernatural beings who would have eaten the souls of more powerful people.[3] In the Classic period some Maya art that depict the extraction of children's hearts during the ascension to the throne of the new kings, or at the beginnings of the Maya calendar have been studied.[4] In one of these cases, Stela 11 in Piedras Negras, Guatemala, a sacrificed boy can be seen. Other scenes of sacrificed boys are visible on painted jars.

Teotihuacan culture

There is evidence of child sacrifice in Teotihuacano culture. As early as 1906, Leopoldo Batres uncovered burials of children at the four corners of the Pyramid of the Sun. Archaeologists have found newborn skeletons associated with altars, leading some to suspect "deliberate death by infant sacrifice".[5]

Toltec culture

In 2007, archaeologists announced that they had analyzed the remains of 24 children, aged 5 to 15, found buried together with a figurine of Tlaloc. The children, found near the ancient ruins of the Toltec capital of Tula, had been decapitated. The remains have been dated to AD 950 to 1150.

"To try and explain why there are 24 bodies grouped in the same place, well, the only way is to think that there was a human sacrifice", archaeologist Luis Gamboa said.[6]

Aztec culture

Main article: Human sacrifice in Aztec culture

Tláloc, as shown in the late 16th century Codex Rios.

Aztec religion is one of the most widely documented pre-Hispanic cultures. Diego Durán in the Book of the Gods and Rites wrote about the religious practices devoted to the water gods, Tlaloc and Chalchiuhtlicue, and a very important part of their annual ritual included the sacrifice of infants and young children.

According to Bernardino de Sahagún, the Aztecs believed that, if sacrifices were not given to Tlaloc, the rain would not come and their crops would not grow. Archaeologists have found the remains of 42 children sacrificed to Tlaloc (and a few to Ehecátl Quetzalcóatl) in the offerings of the Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan. In every case, the 42 children, mostly males aged around six, were suffering from serious cavities, abscesses or bone infections that would have been painful enough to make them cry continually. Tlaloc required the tears of the young so their tears would wet the earth. As a result, if children did not cry, the priests would sometimes tear off the children's nails before the ritual sacrifice.[7]

where is the section with the question?

hello! : )

1. intercessory weapons

“god is looking for somebody, a wall builder; somebody who can prevent calamities and avert disasters through importunate tears of supplication,” writes father oforka. “such wall builders attend the divine council and, like spiritual attorneys, passionately argue their cases in order to achieve their purpose.”

an example of an intercessory warrior is moses in the old testament. “moses acted as a bridge between god and his people. that was an office that god called him to when he appeared to him in the form of a burning bush. he therefore respects both moses as his faithful servant and his office of mediation between him and his people,” father oforka writes.

how does intercession play a role in our lives today, as the spiritual battle rages on still? “we must go back to our roots and repossess the right of attending the divine council through the ministry of intercession,” father oforka explains. we intercede through prayer, petitioning for others before the throne of god.

2. the name of jesus 

“there is something in the name of jesus that is awesome and fascinating,” father oforka writes. “hence, the quiver of the intercessory cannot be complete without it.”

saints paul, peter, and john write extensively about the power of the name of christ. no one can make demons subject to him without the name of christ.

in the early church, justin martyr wrote, “for every demon, when exorcised in the name of this very son of god – who is the first-born of every creature, who became man by the virgin, who suffered, and was crucified under pontius pilate, who died, who rose from the dead, and ascended into heaven – is overcome and subdued. but though you exorcise any demon in the name of any of those who are among you – either kings, or righteous men, or prophets, or patriarchs – it will not be subject to you.”

3. the power of praise 

praise is a underrated arrow in the quiver of a christian. “it’s important that intercessors should learn the power of praise,” writes father oforka. “a group of prayer ministers may gather for hours praising god and soaking the air with divine waves. . the father cherishes it when his awesome deeds are recounted and his person is addressed accordingly.”

what does this have to do with spiritual warfare? “at those times when the thick clouds of evil begin to gather, when the smoke of satan begins to blur our view and choke our breath, intercessors might opt to descend into the bright cloud of praise, invoking these awesome names, instead of a mournful prayer-fight.”

heaven can’t resist soulful praise of the faithful – and satan can’t stand to hear god praised here on earth.

4. the fire of the holy spirit

the fire of the holy spirit has a two-fold purpose in the life of the spiritual warrior. “it could be used as both an offensive and a defensive weapon,” father oforka explains. “it is like the word of god, which is double-edged and therefore dual in purpose.”

we often see god through the medium of fire throughout the old testament. he appears to moses in a burning bush, and as a pillar of fire through the desert wanderings of the israelite nation. in his letter to the hebrews, saint paul writes that god is an “all consuming fire.”

5. the eucharist 

in the gospel of john, christ says: “very truly i tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the son of man and drink his blood, you have no life within you.” the institution of the eucharist is an event recorded meticulously by three of the synoptic gospels and saint paul.

when catholics worship in the mass and receive the body of christ through the eucharist they can “draw more strength than he can image,” explains father oforka. “an intercessory, who identifies with jesus in the eucharist, can handle difficult cases. he does not just end with the invocation of this treasure. he must, as often as possible, be part of the sacrifice of the mass through which this power flows.”

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~ destiny ^_^