Call for Papers Nº 12, December 2022

Call for papers for the "Studies" section of issue 12, December 2022.

Monograph: The consolidation of the Catholic Church in Latin America, between the nation state and Romanisation (second half of the 19th century).

Editors associated with this issue:

Lucas Bilbao. IEHS/ IGEHCS/ Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina. bilbaolucas@gmail.com 

Sebastián Hernández Méndez. Universidad de los Andes, Chile / Universidad de Zaragoza, Espanha. s.hernandez.mendez@hotmail.com

 

The recomposition of Catholicism in new social, economic and cultural scenarios marked by the emergence of Latin American republics allowed the configuration of modern local Churches. Although at different rates according to regional and national circumstances, the Catholic Church advanced in institutional organisation, territorial control of the dioceses and the formation of the clergy. New ecclesiastical provinces were created and the number of dioceses, parishes and churches increased. The normative impulse led to the holding of diocesan and provincial synods, reaching its climax at the end of the 19th century, when the prelates of the continent met in Rome to participate in the Latin American Plenary Council. Diocesan curias underwent a process of bureaucratisation that allowed for a more efficient administration of the territory under their charge, as well as a tighter record of clergy, parishioners and the administration of the sacraments. The education of the clergy, with the creation and reform of conciliar seminaries and the sending of seminarians to training centres in Europe and America, was another substantive element in this process. The Church's presence in the national territory expanded thanks to the arrival of new religious orders and congregations from both sides of the Atlantic, which facilitated missionary and "civilising" work in collaboration - and not always without tension - with the state. The laity, individually or collectively considered, played an active role in many of these processes, whether by proposing to Rome the creation of new dioceses, financially supporting the arrival of religious congregations, or financing the construction of temples and cultural, press or charitable enterprises.
More recent historiography has pointed to the complex relationships and reciprocal influences between the organisation of the Catholic Church and the shaping of modern states in Latin America. This has not only made it possible to overcome old interpretations that identified the Church as a reactionary institution in the construction of modern society - and therefore in permanent conflict with a liberal state described as a secularising vector - but has also shed light on different ways of coexistence and collaboration in the mutual processes of modernisation of Church and state, without obscuring, much less denying, the points of conflict in contexts of secularisation. At the same time, new contributions resulting from the marriage between global and transnational history and studies on ultramontanism and Romanisation have highlighted the relevance of transnational circuits and networks as channels for the transmission and dissemination of experiences, ideas, images and goods in the shaping of a Catholicism that was more sensitive to the directives of the Holy See. A union at the heart of global Catholicism that was not limited to the merely disciplinary, but also found strong devotional and emotional expressions.
This dossier aims to contribute to the study of the processes of modernisation, institutionalisation, territorialisation and bureaucratisation of the Catholic Church in Latin America in contexts conditioned by the formation of modern nation states and the configuration of a global Catholicism with a strong ultramontane imprint. It proposes to reflect on the scenarios of organisation, negotiation and tension - institutional and discursive - that allowed or affected the consolidation of the local Churches in the continent during the second half of the 19th century. As local churches are not understood as watertight compartments, but as porous spaces open to exchanges and collaborations with other churches, studies adopting translocal and transnational approaches will be enthusiastically received.

Among the suggested lines of study, the following stand out:

- Process of territorialisation and institutionalisation of ecclesiastical spaces.
- Links between church and state.
- Solidarity networks and translocal and transnational collaborations.
- Romanisation and relations with the Holy See.
- Organisation of the laity and lay apostolate.
- Episcopal authority and clergy.
- Education, reform and discipline of ecclesiastical agents.
- Religious congregations, missionary activity and charity.
- Local Churches in international settings.
- Diocesan synods and provincial councils.
- Ultramontane liturgy and devotions.

The deadline for submission of papers is 31 May 2022.

Contributions must conform to the editorial guidelines of the journal: http://revistas.um.edu.uy/index.php/revistahumanidades/about/submissions

Send contributions to: revistahumanidades@um.edu.uy