Customer Reviews

Catechizing Culture: Missionaries, Aymara, and the "New Evangelization"

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One of the first anthropological studies of Catholic missions to focus on both evangelizers and the evangelized. This book is notable for its careful attention to earlier ethnographic research in the Andean region. The author correctly asserts that missionization should be seen as part of a larger process of globalization and documents the shift from a "theology of liberation" to a theology stressing "inculturation" -- a new strategy that gives greater attention to indigenous beliefs and practices. According to the author, one consequence of "inculturation" is that Catholic priests now encourage the Aymara to revive rituals that earlier generations of Catholic priests had tried to eradicate. Practices once denounced as idolatrous are being re-interpreted as essentially "Christian." This is an excellent book. It is clearly written, highly accessible, and will be of keen interest to anthropologists, specialists in religious studies, and students of globalization. Stephen D. Glazier, Professor of Anthropology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

If you can get past the scholarly anthropological mumbo jumbo this book is great for those interested in the Aymara people and their evangelization.

Captivating and insightful study on an Aymara community. Very relevant to those interested in the modern situation of individuals and communities in the altiplano of Bolivia.

All I can say about these Catholic priests is TOO LITTLE,TOO LATE. Here is a parable about this situation. Suppose you had a Labrador retriever that you owned for many years and really loved. Now suppose some stranger came along and before your eyes beats your dog to death, "for your own good". Now 5 years the same person comes along and says "Hey, I should not have done that. Here take this Jack Russel Terrier." Would that make the stranger a good person? Would that make up for what he did to your dog.Can a new dog of different breed make up for the brutal destruction of the one you had and loved for so many years?