Evangelization in Mexico: The multiple responses of the Nahuas to Christian preaching [i]

Abstract

This article proposes a comparison between the time of the spiritual conquest and present times, with regards to Christian evangelization in Mexico. The work begins with a general panorama of the responses of some Nahua communities to the new religion during idolatry proceedings in the 1530s. In contrast with the beginning of this historical process that entailed evangelization and discipline, we analyze the cultural practices of two Nahua communities in the municipality of Chicontepec in the Huasteca region in Veracruz. We explore the opinions of Catholics catechists, who assumed the role of indoctrinators in their own communities from the 1980s onwards. Today, Nahuas express their fondness for two religions--one of them known as el costumbre, the other one being Christianity. Due to the most recent evangelization wave, Nahuas are able to put together or set apart both systems, according to what suits them best, and in agreement with their worldview and cultural practices.