The jesuits at the confines of the empire. Evangelization in Villa Rica Del Espíritu Santo (Paraguay, 1589-1675)

Abstract

The first Jesuits who arrived in Paraguay did so from the Assistance of Portugal, with the consent of the provincial of Peru, creating the residences of Asunción and Villa Rica as the basis of their missionary operations. They had direct contact with the actors of that time and were exposed to their confrontations, of which they were sometimes mediators. Through documentary sources, traveler stories and a selected bibliography, we approach the work from the field of the early evangelization of the Jesuits in the region, who placed themselves and understood what a conflict zone meant, by using the indigenous labor, assuming causes and consequences.