Maya Christians and Their Churches in Sixteenth-Century Belize (Maya Studies)

It is widely held that Christianity came to Belize as an extension of the conquest of Yucatan and that adherence to Christian belief and practice was abandoned in the absence of enduring Spanish authority. An alternative view comes from the excavations of Maya churches at Tipu and Lamanai, which show that the dead were buried in Christian churchyards long after the churches themselves fell into disuse, and pre-Columbian ritual objects were cached in Christian sacred spaces both during and after Spanish occupation. Excavations also reveal that the architectural style of these early churches is Franciscan in inspiration but nonetheless the product of continuing community efforts at construction and repair. A conclusion difficult to ignore is that the Maya of Tipu and Lamanai considered themselves Christians with or without Spanish presence. Viewing historical and archaeological data through the lens of her personal experience of Roman Catholicism, and informed by feminist approaches, Elizabeth Graham assesses the concept of religion, the significance of doctrine, the empowerment of the individual, and the process of conversion by examining the meanings attributed to ideas, objects and images by the Maya, by Iberian Christians, and by archaeologists. Graham’s provocative study also makes the case that the impact of Christianity in Belize was a phenomenon that uniquely shaped the development of the modern nation. A volume in the series Maya Studies, edited by Diane Z. Chase and Arlen F. Chase An Important And Innovative Study That Brings A Good Number Of Fascinating Archaeological Findings To Bear On The Process Of Christian Conversion In The Colonial Maya World. Seldom Has The Archaeological Material Culture Of An Evangelized Society Been Brought To Light So Thoroughly And Engagingly.?fernando Cervantes, Coauthor Of Angels, Demons, And The New World A Convincing And Fascinating Study Of Maya Religion And Christianity In The Frontier.?joel Palka, University Of Illinois-chicago Based On Her Analysis Of Archaeological Evidence From The Excavations Of Maya Churches At Tipu And Lamanai, Elizabeth Graham Seeks To Understand Why The Maya Sometimes Actively Embraced Catholicism During The Period Of European Conquest And Continued To Worship In This Way Even After The End Of Spanish Occupation. The Maya In Belize Appear To Have Continued To Bury Their Dead In Christian Churchyards Long After The Churches Themselves Had Fallen Into Disuse. They Also Seem To Have Hidden Pre-hispanic Objects Of Worship In Christian Sacred Spaces During Times Of Persecution, And Excavations Reveal The Style Of The Early Churches To Be Unmistakably Franciscan. The Evidence Suggests That The Maya Remained Christian After 1700, When Spaniards Were No Longer In Control, Which Challenges The Widespread Assumption That Because Christianity Was Imposed By Force It Was Never Properly Assimilated By Indigenous Peoples. Combining Historical And Archaeological Data With Her Experience Of Having Been Raised As A Roman Catholic, Graham Proposes A Way Of Assessing The Concept Of Religious Experience And Processes Of Conversion That Takes Into Account The Material, Visual, Sensual, And Even Olfactory Manifestations Of The Sacred. A Volume In The Series Maya Studies, Edited By Arlen Chase And Diane Z. Chase "Based on her analysis of archaeological evidence from the excavations of Maya churches at Tipu and Lamanai, Elizabeth Graham seeks to understand why the Maya sometimes actively embraced Catholicism during the period of European conquest and continued to worship in this way even after the end of Spanish occupation. The Maya in Belize appear to have continued to bury their dead in Christian churchyards long after the churches themselves had fallen into disuse. They also seem to have hidden pre-Hispanic objects of worship in Christian sacred spaces during times of persecution, and excavations reveal the style of the early churches to be unmistakably Franciscan. The evidence suggests that the Maya remained Christian after 1700, when Spaniards were no longer in control, which challenges the widespread assumption that because Christianity was imposed by force it was never properly assimilated by indigenous peoples. Combining historical and archaeological data with her experience of having been raised as a Roman Catholic, Graham proposes a way of assessing the concept of religious experience and processes of conversion that takes into account the material, visual, sensual, and even olfactory manifestations of the sacred."--Publisher description The view from Belize and the vision from St. Mike's Yucatan and Belize on the eve of conquest Chesse and terms Being Christian and the doctrine of the church The environment of early contact The millennial kingdom and Belize missions How to tell a church The churches at Tipu and Lamanai Reductions and upheaval in the seventeenth century What Europe did for us Being pagan Everyone knows what a dragon looks like Appendix 1. Friars in Belize Appendix 2. Bishops of Yucatan to 1714.