why is it that "carnival" an important holiday is celebrated in cuba?.....and a couple more questions below.

Question

why is it that "carnival" an important holiday is celebrated in cuba?
how is it celebrated?
who celebrates?certain religions?national?

Answer 1

1. Carnaval is a pre-Lent celebration. Lent is a period of fasting in the Christian tradition, and some foodstuffs are given up for the 40-day period. What those foods were, varied from country to country. In England it was eggs and flour, which is (a) why pancakes are made on Shrove Tuesday (to use up stocks of those foods), (b) why there are lots of Lent traditions that involve using eggs for other purposes (egg-painting, egg-rolling contests, egg-and-spoon races), and (c) why the Easter Egg tradition began (at Easter eggs could be eaten again). In other parts of the Christian world the fast involved other types of food. The word carnival has Latin roots, and derives from "carne levare" (removing of flesh = giving up meat). The carnival in New Orleans is called Mardi Gras, which comes from the French for Fat Tuesday (extra-consumption of foods on Shrove Tuesday, the day before the start of Lent).

2. Cuba is just one of many countries that has a Carnival celebration, and New Orleans has already been mentioned. More well-known Carnivals include those at Rio de Janeiro (but there are also big ones in the Brazilian cities of Recife and Salvador de Bahia), and Trinidad (but most English-, French- and Dutch-speaking islands celebrate too). You will also find Carnival in the mainland countries surrounding the Caribbean basin.

3. Most carnivals include parades, costumes, dancing, lively local music, food, drink, revelry, and often libertine behaviour. In the Caribbean/Latin American region Africans adapted the subdued European-style celebration, and introduced their own customs, and made it what it is today. In many cases, slaves used the costumed carnival parade as a means of surreptitiously mocking their white masters, this was especially so in Trinidad, where Carnival was banned for many years. So it has both Catholic and African animist roots.

4. In Cuba, Carnival used to take place on July 26, St. Ann's Day, to commemorate that date in 1953 when Fidel Castro and his revolutionary troops attacked the Moncada barracks. You can still find websites that state this. However Granma Internacional, the official voice of the Cuban Government states clearly it takes place in February and March (just as with other countries, having varying dates each year, because Easter is a "moveable feast").
http://www.granma.cu/INGLES/2005/febrero/vier25/10carnavales.html
http://www.cwo.com/~lucumi/history.htm
http://encarta.msn.com/media_461565274/Carnival_Music_of_Cuba.html

Answer 2

Firstly, nobody, not even the wonderful people on this forum, has the right to tell you you're a bad Jew. Actually, I don't believe there is such a thing. There are bored Jews, ignorant Jews, lazy Jews and non-practicing Jews, but none of those are bad Jews. (Maybe if you ripped off a few billion dollars from a few thousand investors, we'd call you a bad Jew). The most important thing about being Jewish is to try a little more today than you did yesterday. That means, keep learning a bit. Try do another good deed each day or even each month. It's Chanukah right now, try light some Chanukah candles. Use the Internet to read more about your Judaism. Don't get hung up about the Batmitzvah, it's not a make-it-or-break-it for being Jewish. What I would suggest is finding a Temple that doesn't base itself on paying members. Judaism shouldn't come with a price. I am sure, if you look around, you will find a Temple (shul) that does not charge for membership. You will probably also find that the rabbi and rebbetzin there will be friendly and approachable. Good luck!