The Foundation of a Jesuit Praxis. Missionary profile, Disputes of Authority and Forms of Self-representation in the Southern Frontiers of the Iberian Empires

WILDE, GUILLERMO

The Acquaviva Project: Claudio Aquaviva´s Generalate (1581-1615) and the Emergence of Modern Catholicism

Boston College

Lugar: Boston; Año: 2017; p. 83 - 108

This chapter explores some of the foundational elements of Jesuit praxis in South America during Acquaviva?s generalship. It argues that a pragmatic reorientation of the order took place during this period that promoted the creation of an effective decision-making system (by means of a body of instructions, regulations, consultations, memoirs, and precepts) that gave autonomy to the overseas provinces of the order, especially in the administration of the missionary areas. Second, Jesuit praxis tended to create and reinforce an identity of the order as rooted in a devotional culture, the basis of which was Ignatian spirituality. This devotional culture was frequently displayed in rituals and public ceremonies, reinforcing the order?s identity and signaling its full entry into Iberian territories at both the global and local levels.