Sulawesi, in Asian Indonesia, is protected by a region of mountains, isolating the Toraja Sa’dan who were colonized quite late by the Dutch (starting in 1905). Despite inter-religious conflicts that marked the 20th century, syncretism remains a daily reality, even today, bringing together Christians (Protestants, Catholics, Pentecostals, etc.), Muslims and practitioners of surviving native cults. The rapid increase of tourism has destabilized the values and customs of the villagers, while at the same time proposing another means to affirm Toraja cultural identity. It is in this context that the “traditional” festivals, especially those relating to the cult of the dead, have regained in popularity, not without some important transformations. Rendering their society a tourist attraction has not yet destroyed the ritualization of the spectacle of death. This paper evokes the difficult history of relations between politics and religion on Toraja soil, and the close ties between politics, tourism and the sacred developed through culture and local religious ceremonies.