The Vodou faithful sing, their voices rising above the gunfire erupting miles away as frantic drumbeats drown out their

“Vodou is the system that Haitians have developed to deal with the suffering of this life, a system whose object is to minimize pain, avoid disaster, soften losses, and strengthen the survivors as much as the survival instinct,” Haitian sociologist Laënnec Hurbon wrote in a recent essay.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - The Vodou faithful sing, their voices rising above the gunfire erupting miles away as frantic drumbeats drown out their troubles

Los fieles del vudú cantan y sus voces se elevan por encima de los disparos que se desatan a kilómetros de distancia mientras los frenéticos tambores ahogan sus problemas.

Haitians are now praying more and visiting Vodou priests, or "oungans", to help them locate kidnapped loved ones and find vital medication.