Latin American History Commons^™

Incomplete Conversions: Intentions Of Indigenous Idolatry In Early Colonial Latin America, Amanda Boos

History Theses

After the Spanish conquest of Latin America different religious groups set up missions to convert the Indians to Catholicism. In the 1530s and 1560s overzealous officials started punishing the indigenous people for idolatry because they saw it as a rejection of Catholic and Spanish rule. This thesis examines why indigenous people continued their religious practices after their supposed conversion to Catholicism. The author argues that indigenous traditions of incorporating new deities into their pantheon led them to believe that the Catholic god was another to be included in their worship, not one to replace their belief system. Additionally, the Spanish …