Envisioning a Catholic Past, Present and Future: Conversion, Recuperation and Andean Christianity in Talavera, Peru

In the colonial era, many Spanish missionaries in Andes sought a total temporal and cultural break between pagan past desired Christian future of indigenous Andeans. Discussions conversion modern-day have often echoed this line thinking, portraying conversion—whether to Protestantism or Roman Catholicism—as an event radical discontinuity, mapping rupture onto invasion subsequent evangelisation Americas. doing so, however, scholars portrayed Catholicism as veneer over ‘authentic’ Andes—which was assumed not be Catholic, indeed could never be. Recently, south-central Peruvian Andean parish Talavera—under guidance first generation Catholic priesthood, made up entirely men born raised local area—discourses surrounding portray source continuity rather than discontinuity with Catholicism. Drawing from historical ethnographic sources, article demonstrates that although has been continues important point reference contemporary Andes, question what people convert shifted. Today, are spoken already inherently profoundly Catholic; conversion, sense need make ‘really’ is considered long accomplished. As discusses, national context where dominant ubiquitous hegemony, political stance which runs counter longstanding harmful stereotypes Andeans ‘real’ Catholics thus unable Peruvians.