The lost paradise: The Jesuit Republic in South America

by Philip Caraman

Book by Caraman, Philip

Genres: History

341 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1975

About the author

Rev. Father Philip Caraman, SJ

Roman Catholic priest, historian, biographer, professor. Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature (FRSL). His works chiefly concentrate on the history the Society of Jesus; including important figures such as martyrs and saints, the Jesuits' missionary activities, and the persecution of Catholics in Elizabethan and Jacobean Great Britain.

Reviews

[Czarny Pies · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent introductory history of the Indian Missions and Reductions operated by the Jesuits from the start of the 16th Century to the Middle of the 18th Century in Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay and Argentina. The Reductions typically had 2,500 to 3,000 Indian residents. They were self-sufficient. The Indians not only performed the agricultural work but exercised many trades such as blacksmithing and carpentry.

The success of the missions were a source of great jealousy amongst the settlers from Europe. Thus when the political power of the Jesuits in Europe declined in the 18th Century, the Portuguese colonial administrators abolished the missions. The white settlers attempted to enslave the Indians who had lived on the reductions. Whether they escaped to the jungle or were enslaved, the living standards of the Indians declined dramatically. Caraman's book provides a fine narrative of a noble endeavour and the absolutely scandalous manner in which it came to an end.

[Nancy Davison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this after my Peace Corps service in Paraguay, in 1987. It gave me a much different take on the Jesuits and how important they were to the welfare of the Tupi-Guaraní people in Paraguay and surrounding areas.

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

this seems like an ok intro to the jesuit reductions in south america and how they worked and what happened to them, and he's obviously very familiar with the jesuit sources. however he is also a catholic priest, and probably because of that he never really questions the fundamental purpose of the jesuit enterprise or their paternalistic attitude to the native americans. sometimes it's difficult to tell if an assessment of the guarani's low capacity for independent action is something from the jesuit sources he's quoting or his own opinion. i assume that more recent books on this probably go into the guarani perspective in a more even handed way(at least i would hope so)

[Filip · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Lost Paradise is fascinating true story how handfull of Jesuits, with intention of christianising and civilasing wild tribes of inner Latin America, developed series of reductions, or cities where tribes lived in peace, everybody was equal, there was no private property. Paraguay reductions where true socialist utopia. It is incredible how Jesuits lived socialism few houndred years before Marx and Engles.
The bravado of Jesuits is really something. They left riches of Europe and lived among wild and violent tribes in godforsakend parts of earth, protected tribes they christianisied, balanced their utopian Republic betwen tribes, Spanish and Portugese, served as priests, doctors, architects, soldiers, economists and who knows what else. May God send us more priests like they where.
The book is excellent, I recommend it to everyone who wants to know more about Latin America, althought I had some problems fallowing some toponims, river names etc. so I recommend a copy with good maps so reader doesn't get lost on geography of reductions.