Missionaries and Commanders: The Jesuits in Mindanao, 1718-68

In the Philippines, at the fringes of the Spanish empire, the Society of Jesus took on a difficult task, the mission and pastoral work on the Island of Mindanao, which was ruled mostly by Muslim polities. In the frontier zone between Spanish and Islamic spheres of influence, Jesuit missionaries, in...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Crailsheim, Eberhard
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2022
País:España
Institución:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repositorio:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/273146
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/273146
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:The Philippines
Jesuits
Spanish empire
Islam
Eighteenth century
Communication
War
Mindanao
Sulu
Missionaries
Descripción
Sumario:In the Philippines, at the fringes of the Spanish empire, the Society of Jesus took on a difficult task, the mission and pastoral work on the Island of Mindanao, which was ruled mostly by Muslim polities. In the frontier zone between Spanish and Islamic spheres of influence, Jesuit missionaries, in symbiosis with Spanish and native Christian troops, tried to expand their zone of influence and force Islam back. Thereby, the priests participated actively in defensive and offensive military tasks. This article gives an overview of the Jesuits’ presence in the south of the Philippines and then, by studying printed Jesuit sources, analyzes the image cultivation of the local members of the order. Putting the topic in the context of the anti-Jesuit discussion in Europe, the article reasons that the communication strategy of the Jesuits in the middle of the eighteenth century was particularly aimed at highlighting the usefulness of the missionaries to the colony and the empire in general.