Christopher Vargas
In the Picture I chose [Missionaries bring Christianity to Hispaniola][1] it depicts missionaries who seem to be trying to show the Indians something. In the meantime, the Spanish soldiers are fighting with the Indians both groups are killing each other and the Jesuits in between are caught in between the fighting. The Jesuits were sent to the Americas by the church to try and convert Natives in the Americas to Christianity by trying to educate them in and show them how to try and be civil. During the conquest of the Americas by Europe the crown had a difficult time justifying taking over land from the Indians and enslaving them. One way they justified their actions was by claiming that it was their job to help the Native Indians by guiding the “savages” and “uncivilized” Indias and to set them in the right path of Christianity.
Through out the colonies the Christian Church would send Jesuits to help the Indians in teaching them about religion, Spanish and how to follow in the steps of Christianity. The Church at the time had almost as much diplomatic power as the King had, the Spanish Soldiers were not allowed to abuse their authority with Indians who were in the process of turning Christian. In the image I see what looks like a saint watching over the fight that is taking place making me think that the Spanish believed that they had a divine power watching over them.
In the picture we can see the Indians being depicted as people who lack in technology only using spears and bows and almost completely naked, compared to the Spaniards who have shields guns and armor. The Indians are portrayed to be savages while the Jesuits look to be trying to establish something like a pillar a foundation to what might be Christianity in the Americas. From the readings we have done we see that Christianity can still be found in some countries like Brazil, Mexico and Argentina in which traditions like attending mass and the power the institution of the church holds in those countries. One example being from the book Black Legend: The Many Lives of Raul Grigera and the Power of Racial Storytelling in Argentina in which we read about the family of a famous clack musician and the many stories told about who they were in the text it talks about Domingo a relative of Raul who was a pianist for a church.[2] We also learn that during those days the churches who would baptize children or marry people had to specify what skin color was the person was in the document’s archives for the Church.
[1] JCB Archive of Early American Images, John carter Collections
[2] Paulina L. Alberto, Black Legend: The Many Lives of Raul Grigera and the Power of Racial Storytelling in Argentina. Cambridge University Press 2022