Full title: Protestantism and Political Conflict in the Nineteenth-Century Hispanic Caribbean
Author: Luis Martnez-Fernndez
Subject: Latin American Studies/Religion
Paper ISBN 0-8135-2994-8
Cloth ISBN 0-8135-2993-X
Pages: 304 pp., 3 maps & 6 illus.
Description: Examines the ways in which Protestantism shaped and was shaped by the culture of Cuba and Puerto Rico in the nineteenth century.
Catholicism has long been recognized as one of the major forces shaping the Hispanic Caribbean (Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic) during the nineteenth century, but the role of Protestantism has not been fully explored. Luis Martínez-Fernández traces the emergence of non-Catholic religious activities in Cuba and Puerto Rico during a key period of national cultural consolidation. Using a comparative framework, he looks at the ways in which Protestantism, though officially "illegal" for most of the century, established itself, competed with Catholicism, and took differing paths in Cuba and Puerto Rico.
The author traces the links between religion and politics, particularly with regard to early Protestant activities. Protestants encountered a complex social, economic, and political landscape both in Cuba and in Puerto Rico and soon found that their very presence, coupled with their demands for freedom of worship and burial rights, entangled them in a series of interrelated struggles in which the Catholic Church was embroiled. While the established Catholic Church increasingly identified with the conservative, pro-slavery, and colonialist causes, Protestants tended to be anti-Spanish or nationalistic and to pursue particular economic activities such as cigar manufacturing in Cuba and sugar cane cultivation in Puerto Rico. The early Protestant communities reflected the sociocultural milieus from which they emerged and were profoundly shaped by the economic activities of their congregants. This influence, in turn, shaped not only the congregations composition, but also their political and social orientations.
Luis Martínez-Fernández is chair of the department of Puerto Rican and Hispanic Caribbean Studies at Rutgers University, where he also holds a joint appointment in the department of history.
Praise for Protestantism and Political Conflict in the Nineteenth-Century Hispanic Caribbean
"This important and interesting book fills a substantial gap in the literature of the historical evolution of Protestantism in the Spanish-speaking Caribbean and seeks to engage the larger literature of Protestant history in the Americas."Félix Matos Rodríguez, director of the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College of the City University of New York
