THE JESUIT MISSIONS (REDUCCIONES) IN SOUTH AMERICA
Written
by Marco Ramerini
The Indios Guaraní of
Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil would have been another indigenous people victim of the
colonial conquest in South America, if the Jesuits would haven't been able to persuade the
King of Spain to grant that vast region to their care.
The Jesuits promised to the King generous rewards, in the form of tributes, in exchange of
the exemption from the "encomiendas" (hard labour to which were subjected all
the other Indios), assuring that the region would have been an Imperial dominion thanks
only to the Gospel power.
Therefore, for about 150 years, the Jesuits succeeded in protecting the Guaraní from the
raids of the slave-hunters from São Paulo (Paulistas). They founded several missions or
"reducciones" and developed a kind of evangelisation a bit peculiar for that
time. They put into practice the precepts of the Gospel, isolated the Guaraní from the
bad influences of the Europeans and developed the creativity of the Indios.
The Jesuits, in the 17th and 18th Centuries, achieved this bold experiment in religious
colonisation. The Reducciones encompassed the vast zone of today’s Argentina,
Paraguay, southern Brazil and Uruguay. They were one of the most singular creations of the
Catholic missionary activity.
The first settlement had founded in 1609. Many other Missions were established along the
rivers, in the Chaco, Guaira and Paraná territories.
The first missions were founded in Brazil, but due to the continuous raids of the
Paulistas, were soon abandoned (1640s.).
Guided by the Jesuits, the Indios had advanced laws, they founded free public services for
the poor, schools, hospitals, established birth control, and suppressed the death penalty.
A kind of society based on the principles of the primitive Christianity had been
established. All the inhabitants of the "reducciones" worked in the
"tupambae", land property of the community, and all the products which they
produced were fairly divided among them. The Guaraní were very skilled in handicraft
works, sculpture, woodcarving etc.; the "reducciones", were the first
"industrial" state of the South America. Indeed, such advanced products as
watches, musical instruments, etc. were produced in the "reducciones". The first
typography of the New World had been built in the reducciones. The working day was
about 6 hours (in Europe at that time was of 12-14 hours), and the free time had
been dedicated to music, dance, bow-shot contests and to prayer.
The Guaraní society was the first in history of the world to be entirely literate.
The main settlements had been on the Rio Paraná along the border of the present Argentina
and Paraguay.
These missions reached their apogee in the first half of 18th century, gathered around
about 30 missions, between 100.000 and 300.000 Indios converted to Catholicism.
The missions assumed almost full independence, as if they were real nations.
The "reducciones" were centres of the community life. The main buildings, like
the church, the college, the church yard were concentrated around a wide square. The
Indios’ houses were faced on the other three sides of the square. The village was
also provided with a house for the widows, a hospital, and several warehouses. In the
centre of the square, rose on a tall base, remained a huge cross and the patron Saint
statue, for which the mission was named.
Some "reducciones" numbered up to 20.000 inhabitants.
Trouble started in 1750s, when the King of Spain ceded to Portugal a portion of the
territory where the missions were located . The Portuguese, who wanted to take
economic advantage of these zones and of the work of the Indios, caused the so-called
Guaraní wars which concluded in 1756 with the Indios defeat. The Missions ended in 1767,
with the expulsion of the Jesuits. During that time, the last missions also emptied and
the Indios returned in the forest.
Today, of that time, are left the beautiful ruins of some of the "reducciones",
and the indigenous language: the Guaraní, that is today the only native language to be
the official language of a South American nation: Paraguay. The Indios Guaraní almost
disappeared as they are now, reduced to only 50.000 people.
The remains of the reducciones, are one of the most interesting chapters of the colonial
history, with some of the most remarkable examples of art of the 17th. and 18th. centuries
in South America.
San Ignacio Guazù (1609)
Santa Rosa de Lima (1698)
Santa Maria da Fé (1647)
San Cosme y Damian (1652) it had also an astronomic observatory.
Santiago (1651)
Itapua today Encarnacion.
Jesus de Tavarangué (1685)
UNESCO
world heritage.
Santissima Trinidad de Paranà (1706) UNESCO world
heritage.
The
ruins of 15 missions are in Argentina:
San Ignacio Mini
(1632)
UNESCO world heritage.
Candelaria
Santa Ana (1637)
UNESCO
world heritage.
Nuestra Senhora de Loreto
UNESCO world heritage.
Corpus, San Carlos, San José, Martires, San Javier, Conception, Apostoles, Santo Tomé,
Yapeiu, La Cruz.
Santa Maria la Major
UNESCO world heritage.
The
ruins of 7 missions are in Brazil:
Sao Miguel Arcanjo (das Missoes) (1687) the chief mission of the seven in
Brazil. UNESCO world heritage site.
Close there were the missions of Santo Angelo (1706), Sao Francisco de Borja (1682),
Sao Nicolau, Sao Luiz Gonzaga, Sao Lourenço Martir (1690), Sao Joao Batista (1697).
Chiquitos
missions (Bolivia):
San Francisco Javier, Conception, Santa Ana, San Miguel, San Rafael, San José.
UNESCO world heritage site.
