1. RELIGION IN THE ATLANTIC WORLD

2. PLAN OF LECTURE
The European context – Reformation and Counter-reformation
Religion and the Conquest
Puritan Conquistadors?
Iberian Catholicism; British Protestantism
Indians and Syncretic religion
African religion and African Conversion
Race and Religion

3. The Reformation and Counter-reformation
Settlement of America occurred during momentous religious change in sixteenth century Europe from Luther in 1517
Violence
St Bartholomew Massacre 1572
Thirty Years War,
Fundamentalism and European distaste for religious tolerance

4. Religion and the Conquest
Columbus as Christ bearer
Dominican Antonio de Montesinos and sermon of 1511, Santo Domingo
Giovanni Botero, Relazioi univeresali (1595)
Geronimo de Mendieta – equation of Cortes and Luther

5. Puritan Conquistadors?
Jorge Cañizares-Esguerra, Puritan Conquistadors: Iberianizing the Atlantic,
Millenarian thinking widespread
Satanic demonological discourse – New World as home of Satan
Lope de Vega and John Milton and demonological discourses

6. Catholics and Protestants
Differences in approaches to Indian conversion
Catholic America – a single creed, based on Aristotelian and neo-Thomist philosophy
Protestant America – plurality of creeds, based on individual reading of the Bible

7. Indians and Syncretic religion
Conversion efforts: million converted in New Spain
Merging of Indian and Catholic religious traditions
Why convert? Impressed by Christian god; resemblances between native religion and Christianity
Virgin of Guadelupe – Juan Diego 1536
Appeal of the Virgin Mary and Christian saints

8. African religion
Differences and similarities in African religious expression
Muslims, Christians and “pagans”
Shift from benevolent to malevolent spirits in the Americas – voodoo and obeah

9. Divination Ceremony and Dance, Brazil 1630s: a “Calunda” involving spirit possession

10. Why did Africans convert - Catholicism
John Thornton: Christianity well established in Kongo in sixteenth century
Portuguese emissaries received by the King of Kongo

11. Catholic America – quick conversion
letter of Manuel III of Portugal 1513 re African baptism
ordered all masters in Portugal to baptize their slaves, on pain of losing them --- unless the slaves themselves did not want it

12. African Slaves saying the Rosary, Peru, 1600-1615

13. Why did Africans convert Protestantism
Problems of Protestantism and slavery:
Protestantism associated with freedom
Protestantism allowed individual readings of Bible
Missionary efforts 1701 – Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (SPG)
Reasons for lack of Anglican success
Anglicans sanctioned slavery
maintenance of racial divisions in churches

14. Appeal of Evangelicalism
Period of evangelical revival British North America,
emphasis on emotional response to salvation
Slaves attracted by hopeful message of evangelicals and oral nature of message
Evangelicalism gave a role to slaves, especially enslaved women
Practical benefits: marriage, safeguard against punishment

15. Moravian Congregation, St Thomas WI, 1757

16. Religion and Race
Colin Kidd, The Forging of Races: Race and Scripture in the Protestant Atlantic World
Protestant ethnologists not so much concerned with race as with establishing lineage of Noah – what God did the descendants of Ham worship?
John Pocock: “the distinguishing characteristic of the descendants of Ham is not pigmentation but idolatry.”