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The study on the diffusion of Catholicism in the New World: focused on the relationship between the king and the pope

LEE Seonghun 1

1서울대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

The 'discovery' or 'conquest' of the New World in 1492 was the starting pointof world history that irrevocably changed the fate of the Latin American continent. The global stream known as 'Columbian Exchange', which was the widespreadinter-continental contacts, inter-civilizational conflicts, or bilateral communication,has rendered multifarious effects throughout many historical periods up to thevery contemporary time. The propagation of Catholicism initiated along with this'discovery' transformed Latin America of nowadays in the region that has thebiggest Catholic population in the world. The previous studies in Korea regarding Latin American Catholicism has focusedon the spread of Catholicism in relation to the European colonization, rather thananalyzing the concrete and detailed ways in which Catholicism exerted tremendousinfluences in the whole continent. They were less attentive to various historicalcontexts in which the diffusion of Catholicism differed greatly according to culturallandscapes and political specificities. Thus, this essay attempts to examine thediffusion of Catholicism from the perspective of confrontation between royalauthorities and the power of church. The essay points out that the royal communities and institutional authoritieswhich facilitated the intial process of Catholic evangelization maintainedantagonistic relationship with ecclesial powers. By delving into the gradualtransformation of church systems, it reveals that Catholicism in Latin Americabecame a major field for conquerors in power to attain economic and politicaldominance. And unlike the initial submission and hospitality, the religious convertof the indigenous people attested to the violent inhumanity and opposition. Therefore,the essay aims to pave a clearer way to the understanding of complicated dynamicsand conflicts between Catholicism in Latin America and the establishment ofSpanish colonization.

Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.

This paper was written with support from the National Research Foundation of Korea.