Idol or Martyr: Sacredness and Symbol in the Religiosity of the Indies

doi:10.1017/9781108976893.011

Chapter 10 - Idol or Martyr: Sacredness and Symbol in the Religiosity of the Indies

from Part III - Belief Systems

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 25 November 2022

Esperanza López Parada

Edited by

Rocío Quispe-Agnoli and

Amber Brian

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Rocío Quispe-Agnoli: Affiliation:
Michigan State University
Amber Brian: Affiliation:
University of Iowa

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Summary

This chapter explores transformations in the embodiment of the sacred and the profane through the study of a series of objects that emerged from belief systems of the Native peoples, such as cemis, or Europeans, such as chalices, and which were then resignified during colonial encounters. Surveying a wide range of historical and geographical contexts, including the early stages of European colonization of the islands of the Caribbean and later attempts at the colonization of what is now the US Southwest, this essay explores how the resignification of objects, which transition from sacred to profane depending on the cultural context they inhabit, points to an ongoing questioning of the hierarchical nature of spiritual and religious discourses.

Keywords

Taino cemí idolatry Christian relics emblems Saint John Lateran Church Lares and Penates Codex Telleriano-Remensis Profanation

Type: Chapter
Information: Latin American Literature in Transition Pre-1492–1800 , pp. 151 - 165

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108976893.011 [Opens in a new window]

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Print publication year: 2022

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