Sergio Romero

DESCRIPTION

This seminar will explore the cultural and linguistic implications of the encounter between Native American and Catholic religious traditions after the European conquest. Focusing especially on Mesoamerica and the Andes, we will examine the development of the Spanish missionary project, the dilemmas of translating Christian theology and ritual, the rise of pastoral registers in indigenous languages, the notion of syncretism and its problems, the development of Native American Christianity in the Colonial period and the rise of indigenous ‘folk Catholicism’. Special attention will be given to the Nahua of Central Mexico, the Maya of Yucatan and Highland Guatemala and the Quechua of Southern Peru and Bolivia. We will do extensive readings of indigenous primary sources, and detailed analysis of key texts. Participants will be required to have a reading knowledge of Spanish and/or Portuguese. Knowledge of Nahuatl, a Mayan language or Quechua would be desirable.