CATECHISMS IN COLONIAL SPANISH AMERICA

The essence of a Spanish American catechism during the colonial period was the doctrina cristiana, and hence the small treatises designed to teach the basics of Christianity were generally known by this title (see encomienda-doctrina system).

Primitive Catechisms. The need for a catechism was felt from the very beginning in the evangelization of the natives of the New World. Father Ram—n Pane, the first missionary to Espa–ola (c. 1495), described the failure of his efforts. He had not used any form of catechism, but apparently relied only on teaching the natives the Our Father and other customary prayers. There is no mention of systematic instruction. With the conquest of Mexico, the first formal catechisms appeared. The earliest known catechisms were written in the picture language of the Aztecs. A fragment of one of them was probably among the Mexican manuscripts collected by Lorenzo boturinibenaduci. Rediscovered in Mexico (1806) by Alexander von Humboldt and presented to the Royal Library at Berlin, it has since been lost. Another example is the complete catechism of Pedro de gante, still preserved in the Biblioteca National of Madrid. Other early catechisms date from the decade after the conquest of Peru. These are generally written in Spanish. One feature of these primitive catechisms is their diversity. The first archbishop of Lima, Jer—nimo de loaysa, declared that almost every missionary in the diocese had written his own catechism, a situation to which the archbishop objected highly. These catechisms did not merely confine themselves to eternal truths, but also touched on many aspects of earthly existence. They included advice on the need and methods of personal cleanliness for the natives, especially if they were going to confession or Communion; instructions on how to bring in running water and how to take care of bridges; discussions on the obligation of the native peoples to keep roads in repair; and so on.

As the conquest of the Americas was consolidated, pressure mounted for the complete destruction of the old catechisms. There was too much diversity in their doctrinal teaching, and as order was established, counsels governing the personal and civic life of the natives were gradually taken care of by the civil government. As a result, few of the primitive catechisms are extant. The work of their radical revision was facilitated by the Council of trent, which issued the Roman catechism. This was used by the Council of Lima (1583), the Council of Mexico (1585), and by Luis zapata de cçrdenas, Archbishop of Bogotá, as the basis for new catechisms for Spanish America.

Printing. Because of the need for dictionaries of the native languages and for catechisms, the Church was responsible for the introduction of the printing press in the New World. Of the 223 titles of works printed in 16th-century Mexico, more than 85 percent were connected with the Church's proselytizing work. In 1544 the Doctrina breve was published. Written in Spanish, it contained the elements common to all catechisms of the era: the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Sacraments, the laws of the Church, the capital sins, works of mercy, and prayers. The first catechism in a native language was that of Alonso de Molina, printed in 1546. Both he and the chronicler-explorer Bernardino de sahagòn wrote in Nahuatl; other works were printed in the Tarasco, Otomi, Pirinda, Mixteco, and Zapoteca dialects. In Peru the Doctrina christianay catecismo para instrucción de los indios, written in Spanish, Quechua, and Aymara, was printed in 1584 by Antonio Ricardo on the first type brought to Mexico. That same type was later passed on to the Jesuits, who took it to the Paraguayan Reductions and were using it there in the 18th century.

Attitudes Shown in Catechisms. In presenting dogmas, such as the Trinity and Incarnation, in the native languages, there was the danger that using native-language terms would cause the pagan meaning to linger. Therefore, if paraphrasing of the concept was impossible, some European words were introduced. The Dominican Mart'n de Le—n used a combination of native language and Spanish to signify God, saying "Teotl Dios." Others retained the entire Spanish word, such as "Dios" or "Cristo." Bishop Zumárraga urged that the Scriptures be translated into the native languages, disagreeing with those who feared putting the Sacred Books in the hands of the newly converted. The catechisms reveal that the Spaniards regarded the native peoples as having the mentality of children. Zumárraga continually advised his priests to use simple language and concepts. The Peruvian catechism of sermons of 1585 warned the missionaries not to preach as if they were in a court or a university, for to do so would overwhelm and confuse their audience. Priests

adapted some native customs to the Christian faith. Pedro de Gante, upon seeing how the natives sang in praise of their pagan gods, composed songs about God, Christ, and the Virgin Mary. Father Lucerno placed great drawings of the Last Judgment in public places to arouse the curiosity of the people and cause them to seek explanations.

The Church was conscious of the danger that mass conversions could result in a superficial knowledge of the Catholic faith. Zumárraga warned in the Doctrina christiana of 1546 that some natives were Christians in name and appearance only, but were not well versed enough in their religion to explain it when questioned by nonbelievers. He often stressed the need of real understanding, rather than ceremony and memorization.

Methods and Problems of Teaching. The catechisms were not in a question-and-answer form, but arranged according to themes that were then explained. Applications were made to daily situations. The Seventh Commandment was explained as prohibiting the use of false weights, mixing bad products with good in order to deceive the buyer, and wrapping tamales in many leaves so as to make them appear larger. Zumárraga presented as violators of the Fourth Commandment those parents who neglected their children, kings who passed unjust laws, and Church officials who cared more for the temporal than the spiritual. Masters who treated their servants badly or who did not pay them fairly were breaking the Seventh Commandment. The Dominican catechism of 1548 explained that because woman was made from man, she should not be regarded as a slave, but rather loved and respected. The concept of the Trinity was explained in native terms with the comparison being made to the rugs they made. The rug could be folded three, four, five times; it was still the same rug. So it was with the Trinity.

Idolatry. The two main obstacles in the initial conversion of the native peoples were idolatry and polygamy. To combat idolatry, the friars utilized reason, fear, and love. Sahagæn offered the natives the argument that the pagan gods were unable to free them from the Spaniards because the conquerors were servants of the true, all-powerful God who had helped them. Legendary heroes, such as Quetzalc—atl, were false deities, now dead and burning in hell. The God of the Christians was one of kindness who did not want human sacrifices, wishing instead the reverence and love of the people. The Peruvian catechism demonstrated that upon rejecting their false gods, the natives could love, rather than fear, the grandeur of nature. They should not worship the sun because, as human beings with souls, each one of them was better than the sun, who could not speak, sense, or know about God.

To avoid the danger of the return of paganism, each catechism stressed the difference between honoring Christian images and adoring pagan idols. The natives were warned that drink endangered their souls because it occasioned memories of idolatry. Pedro de Gante separated the upper-class children from their parents, believing that by living in the boarding school they would forget their pagan ways. The educated youths were then sent out to preach Sunday sermons in the surrounding towns.

Polygamy. In the Aztec culture women, besides being wives, were also servants. Consequently, the limitation to one partner in the Christian religion was an economic hardship. This was an impediment in the conversion of the upper class. The promiscuous example of the Spaniards also gave the natives the opportunity to counter the missionaries' reprimand with the observation that many conquerors did not obey the Christian precept.

When a native convert did renounce polygamy and prepared to receive the Sacrament of Matrimony, the problem arose concerning which woman should be his wife: the present partner, his first mate, or his favorite woman. In 1537 it was decided that the legal wife would be the first partner or the woman at the time of conversion. As time progressed and the natives were educated in the faith from early childhood, the difficulties in connection with idolatry and polygamy decreased.

Confession. The catechisms dealt extensively with confession. In the pagan religion there had been a form of confession which dealt with corporal transgressions and carried a judicial pardon. The act of telling sins to the Catholic priest, therefore, was not too different, but the concept of its supernatural character was new. In addition to corporal sins, the friars had to emphasize in their catechisms the sins of thought. Sins committed while intoxicated could no longer be blamed on the liquor rather than on the responsibility of the individual. Most of the books had a formal series of questions that the priest asked the penitent so as to make confession easier and more orderly. Some native penitents experienced difficulty concerning the number of their sins. They did not intend to lie, but because of confusion or fear were not accurate. Mart'n de Le—n advised confessors to be very patient and not pressure them for exact numbers. Motolin'a, one of the original Franciscan priests in Mexico, read a list of sins, and the penitent would signify the number by putting aside a seed or pebble for each transgression. God's mercy and His desire that the sinner change his life were stressed. Generally confession was received once a year in Lent, and Communion, once during the Easter season.

The early catechisms presented the Church in the image of the fatherhood of God. This gave equality to all people in the eyes of God, no matter what their condition on earth. Those who were patient in their sufferings, no matter how conquered or humiliated, would be rewarded with the eternal joys of heaven.

Bibliography: j. g. duran, Monumenta Catechetica Hispano-American (Buenos Aires 1984). l.resines, Catecismos Americanos del siglo XVI. (Madrid 1992). e. garcia ahumada, Comienzos de la catequesis en Americay particularmente en Chile (Santiago 1991).

[d. e. tanck]